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RECAP 


The  State  Board  of  Health 

OF  MASSACHUSETTS 

A  Brief  History  of  Its  Organization 
and  Its  Work 


1912 


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Columbia  ©ntomitp 

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College  of  ^fjpstctang  anb  burgeons 
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Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2010  with  funding  from 

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State  Board  of  Health 


OF 


MASSACHUSETTS. 


A  brief  history  of  its  organization  and  its  work, 

1869-1912. 


Material  compiled  Mainly  from  the  Reports  of  the  Board. 


BOSTON : 

WRIGHT  &  POTTER  PRINTING  CO.,  STATE  PRINTERS, 

18  Post  Office  Square. 

1912 


QI1PT 


approved  by 
The  State  Board  of  Publication 


CONTENTS. 


1.  The  Massachusetts  State  Board  of  Health,  1912. 

2.  A  Brief  History  of  the  Organization  of  the  State  Board  of  Health. 

3.  Department  of  Water  Supply  and  Sewerage :  — 

A.  Engineering  Department. 

B.  Lawrence  Experiment  Station. 

4.  Diseases  Dangerous  to  the  Public  Health. 

5.  The  Antitoxin  and  Vaccine  Laboratory. 

6.  Food  and  Drug  Inspection. 

7.  Inspection  of  Dairies. 

8.  The  State  Inspectors  of  Health. 

9.  Members  of  the  State  Board  of  Health  from  1869  to  1912. 

10.  Titles  of  Special  Investigations  contained  in  the  Reports  of  the  State 
Board  of  Health,  and  Publications  from  the  Boai'd's  Laboratories  in 
Other  Journals. 


1.    THE  STATE  BOARD  OF  HEALTH  OF  MASSACHUSETTS,  1912. 


HENKY  P.  WALCOTT,  M.D.,  Chairman, 
CLEMENT  F.  COOGAN,    . 
JOSEPH  A.  PLOUFF,        .        .      '  . 
JULIAN  A.  MEAD,  M.D.,  . 

HIRAM  F.  MILLS,  C.E 

KOBERT  W.  LOVETT,  M.D..    . 
C.  E.  McGILLICUDDY,      . 


.  of  Cambridge. 

.  OF  PlTTSFIEED. 

.  of  Ware. 

.  of  Watertown. 

.  of  Lawrence. 

.  of  Boston*. 

.  of  Worcester. 


Secretary. 
MARK  W.  RICHARDSON,  M.D. 

Assistant  to  the  Secretary. 
WILLIAM  C.  HANSON,  M.D. 

Engineer. 
X.  H.   GOODNOUGH,   C.E. 

Pathologist. 
THEOBALD  SMITH,  M.D. 

Analyst  of  Food  and  Drugs. 
HERMANN  C.   LYTHGOE,   S.B. 


Chemist. 
H.  W.  CLARK. 


•* 


2.    A  BRIEF  HISTORY  OF  THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  STATE 
BOARD  OF  HEALTH. 

Public  health  questions  in  Massachusetts  were  first  studied  in  a  com- 
prehensive manner  by  a  commission  appointed  in  1849  to  report  to  the 
Legislature  a  plan  for  a  sanitary  survey  of  the  State. 

The  commission  consisting  of  Lemuel  Shattuck  of  Boston,  Nathaniel 
P.  Banks,  Jr.,  of  Waltham  and  Jehiel  Abbot  of  Westfield,  made  an  ex- 
tensive investigation  of  all  causes  affecting  favorably  or  unfavorably  the 
health  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Commonwealth,  and  the  following  year 
submitted  a  report  to  the  Legislature.  This  report  is  the  best  public 
document  ever  written  in  Massachusetts,  and  one  of  the  great  documents 
of  the  world.  It  includes  specific  recommendations  for  legislation  lead- 
ing to  a  more  efficient  control  of  the  factors  influencing  the  health  of 
communities  and  individuals.  In  its  introduction  the  report  contains 
the  following  statement :  — 

We  believe  that  the  conditions  of  perfect  health,  either  public  or  personal, 
are  seldom  or  never  attained,  though  attainable ;  —  that  the  average  length 
of  human  life  may  be  very  much  extended,  and  its  physical  power  greatly 
augmented ;  —  that  in  every  year,  within  this  Commonwealth,  thousands  of 
lives  are  lost  which  might  have  been  saved ;  ■ —  that  tens  of  thousands  of 
cases  of  sickness  occur  which  might  have  been  prevented ;  —  that  a  vast 
amount  of  unnecessarily  impaired  health  and  physical  debility  exists  among 
those  not  actually  confined  by  sickness;  —  that  these  preventable  evils  require 
an  enormous  expenditure  and  loss  of  money,  and  impose  upon  the  people 
unnumbered  and  immeasurable  calamities,  pecuniary,  social,  physical,  mental 
and  moral,  which  might  be  avoided ;  —  that  means  exist  within  our  reach  for 
their  mitigation  or  removal;  —  and  that  measures  for  prevention  will  effect 
infinitely  more  than  remedies  for  the  cure  of  disease. 

The  recommendations  included  in  this  report  were  of  far-reaching 
importance.  The  commissioners  recommended  that  a  central  board  of 
health  be  established,  which  should  be  charged  with  the  general  execu- 
tion of  the  laws  of  the  State  relating  to  the  health  of  the  inhabitants. 
They  furthermore  recommended  the  establishment  of  local  boards  of 
health ;  that  a  census  be  taken  of  the  people ;  that  there  be  a  systematic 
registration  of  births,  marriages  and  deaths ;  that  all  causes  of  diseases 


be  thoroughly  investigated;  that  a  sanitary  control  be  maintained  over 
public  buildings  and  factories;  that  proper  quarantine  regulations  be 
formulated ;  that  the  smoke  nuisance  be  abated ;  that  nteasures  be  adopted 
to  prevent  the  adulteration  of  food  and  drugs;  and  many  other  matters 
of  importance. 

The  recommendation  of  the  commission  of  1850  to  establish  a  general 
board  of  health  reads  in  part  as  follows :  — 

The  cause  of  Public  Health  needs  a  .  .  .  central  agency,  to  give  to  the  whole 
sanitary  movement  a  uniform,  wise,  efficient,  economical  and  useful  direction. 
.  .  .  Such  an  agency  would  have  an  exact  knowledge  of  the  condition  of  every 
city  and  town  in  the  State,  and  by  these  means  of  information  would  be  able 
to  suggest  the  measures  best  adapted  to  the  different  circumstances.  They 
would  prevent  a  wasteful  expenditure  of  money  in  imperfect  or  inefficient 
measures.  The  advantages  which  would  result  to  the  whole  State,  and  to 
every  part  of  it,  —  to  each  and  all  of  the  inhabitants,  —  from  the  establish- 
ment of  such  a  central  General  Board  of  Health,  composed  of  the  best  scien- 
tific counsel  and  the  best  practical  experience  which  the  State  can  afford, 
having  constant  access  to  the  most  enlightened  intellects,  and  to  a  knowledge 
of  the  labors  of  the  best  practical  men  in  the  world,  and  assisted  by  at  least 
one  mind  wholly  devoted  to  the  object  in  view,  are  too  great  to  be  fully  seen 
at  once,  and  can  scarcely  be  overstated  or  overestimated.  .  .  .  The  duties  of 
this  board  should  be  ...  to  have  general  direction  of  each  census;  to  super- 
intend the  execution  of  the  sanitary  laws  of  the  State;  to  examine  and  decide 
upon  sanitary  questions  submitted  to  them  by  public  authorities;  and  to  ad- 
vise the  State  as  to  sanitary  arrangements  of  public  buildings  and  public- 
institutions;  to  give  instructions  to  local  boards  of  health  as  to  their  powers 
and  duties;  to  suggest  local  sanitary  rules  and  regulations;  to  recommend 
such  measures  as  they  may  deem  expedient  for  the  prevention  of  disease  and 
the  promotion  of  public  health ;  and  to  report  their  proceeding's  annually  to 
the  State. 

Lemuel  Shattuck  and  the  other  commissioners  of  1850  proved  to  be 
nearly  twenty  years  in  advance  of  their  time,  for  the  organization  of 
a  general  board  of  health  was  not  provided-  for  by  the  Massachusetts 
Legislature  until  1869. 

In  1866  a  committee  of  the  House  of  Bepresentatives  had  reported 
to  the  Legislature  that  it  was  not  expedient  to  establish  a  State  board 
of  health,  and  although  private  individuals,  including  Lemuel  Shattuck. 
bad  urged  the  necessity  of  such  a  board  nothing  definite  was  accom- 
plished at  that  time. 

In  1869.  however,  a  law  was  enacted  creating  a  State  Board  of  Health 
to  consist  of  seven  members  appointed  by  the  Governor.  This  board  was 
given   g-eneral   oversight   of   all  matters   relating  to   the   health    of  the 


people.     The  duties  of  this  Board,  as  defined  by  the  Legislature,  were 
as  follows :  — 

The  Board  shall  take  cognizance  of  the  interests  of  the  life  and  health  of 
the  citizens  in  this  Commonwealth.  They  shall  make  sanitary  investigations 
and  inquiries  in  respect  to  the  causes  of  disease,  and  especially  of  epidemics 
and  the  sources  of  mortality,  and  the  effects  of  localities,  employments,  con- 
ditions and  circumstances  upon  the  public  health;  and  they  shall  gather  such 
information  in  respect  to  those  matters  as  it  may  deem  proper  for  diffusion 
among  the  people.  It  shall  advise  the  government  in  regard  to  the  location 
and  other  sanitary  conditions  of  any  public  institutions,  and  shall  report  to 
the  Legislature  each  year  with  such  suggestions  as  to  legislative  acts  as  they 
may  deem  necessary. 

Henry  Ingersoll  Bowditch,  a  prominent  physician  of  Boston,  was  ap- 
pointed chairman  of  the  first  State  Board  of  Health,  which  position  he 
held  for  over  ten  years,  until  the  State  Board  of  Health  was  merged 
with  other  boards  into  the  State  Board  of  Health,  Lunacy  and  Charity 
in  1879. 

Shortly  after  the  first  meeting  of  the  Board  a  circular  was  prepared 
and  sent  out  to  the  mayors,  selectmen,  boards  of  health  of  cities  and 
towns,  to  all  the  members  of  the  Legislature,  and  to  all  clergymen  and 
physicians  throughout  the  State,  calling  attention  to  the  organization 
of  the  State  Board  of  Health,  describing  in  general  its  powers  and 
duties  and  inviting  their  co-operation  in  the  interest  of  public  health. 

The  importance  which  Dr.  Bowditch  attached  to  the  field  of  activitv 
of  the  newly  created  Board  can  be  seen  from  what  he  says  in  his  address 
at  the  first  meeting  of  the  Board :  — 

As  the  subject  matters  for  our  discussion  may  be  somewhat  indefinite  in 
all  of  our  minds,  I  take  the  liberty  of  addressing  a  few  words  to  you,  in 
order  that  you  may  know  not  only  what  I  consider  the  general  nature  of  our 
duties,  but  may  also  understand  how  high  I  place  these  duties  when  I  consider 
them  in  their  relations  to  the  present  and  future  health  of  the  citizens  of  the 
State.  I  may  be  mistaken  in  my  estimate  of  the  importance  of  the  move- 
ment, the  commencement  of  which  to-day  devolves  upon  us.  T  confess  to  you 
that  I  know  of  no  higher  office  in  the  State  than  that  which  we  now  hold, 
viz.,  that  of  inaugurating  the  idea  of  "  State  medicine  "  in  Massachusetts. 
Upon  our  high  or  low  appreciation  of  the  position  and  of  the  duties  resulting 
from  that  position,  and  upon  our  wise  or  foolish  performance  of  these  duties, 
depends  the  success  of  the  object  aimed  at  in  the  establishment  of  a  State 
board  of  health.  The  last  Legislature,  unconsciously,  perhaps,  on  the  part 
of  many  members  thereof,  has  proposed  a  system  that  may  be  made  by  us 
capable  of  good  to  the  citizens  in  all  future  time,  or  it  may  prove  a  perfect 


10 

abortion.  Our  work  is  for  the  far  future  as  well  as  for  the  present,  and  at 
this  very  opening  of  our  labors  we  should  try  to  place  ourselves  above  the 
region  of  merely  local  or  temporary  excitement  or  of  partisan  warfare,  in 
order  that  we  may  act  wisely  and  for  the  ultimate  good  of  the  whole  people. 

The  activities  of  the  State  Board  of  Health  during  the  first  ten  years 
of  its  existence  were  divergent  and  full  of  achievements.  Investigations 
of  a  great  number  of  sanitary  subjects  were  made  and  many  plans  for 
sanitary  reforms  were  carried  out.  The  extent  of  these  investigations  can 
be  learned  by  referring  to  the  titles  of  the  papers  presented  in  the  re- 
ports of  the  Board,  which  are  published  elsewhere  in  this  volume.  The 
reports  of  the  Board  were  received  with  great  favor  not  only  in  the 
various  States  of  the  union  but  in  European  countries. 

In  1878  the  three  departments  of  health,  lunacy  and  charity  were 
merged  into  one  Board.  Dr.  Bowditch  and  his  associates  were  very 
much  dissatisfied  with  the  change. 

On  the  organization  of  this  new  Board  the  duty  of  acting  as  executive 
health  officer  was  imposed  upon  the  secretary,  Dr.  Charles  S.  Folsom. 

In  1880  Dr.  Henry  P.  Walcott  was  unanimously  elected  as  health  offi- 
cer, in  which  position  he  served  until  1882,  when  he  resigned  as  health 
officer  and  was  appointed  as  a  member  of  the  Board  and  as  chairman 
of  the  committee  on  health. 

In  1886,  by  an  act  of  the  Legislature,  the  State  Board  of  Health  once 
more  entered  upon  an  independent  existence,  and  with  Dr.  Henry  P. 
Walcott  as  chairman  and  Dr.  Samuel  Abbott  as  secretary  it  entered 
upon  its  work  with  a  much  broader  field  before  it  than  that  of  its  pred- 
ecessors. The  powers  conferred  upon  it  were  more  decidedly  of  an  exec- 
utive character,  and  the  duties  more  exacting. 

Among  the  matters  of  which  this  Board  was  to  take  cognizance 
were  — 

1.  The  causes  and  prevention  of  infectious  diseases. 

2.  The  suppression  of  nuisances,  including  the  regulation  of  noxious 
and  offensive  trades. 

3.  The  collection  and  diffusion  of  information  relative  to  industrial 
hygiene,  or  the  effects  of  different  occupations,  industries  and  domestic 
pursuits  upon  people  at  various  ages  and  under  various  conditions  of  life 

4.  The  hygiene  of  schools,  school  buildings  and  public  institutions. 

5.  The  examination  and  investigation  of  public  water  supplies  and! 
public  ice  supplies,  and  the  prevention  of  their  pollution. 

6.  The  investigation  of  drainage  and  sewerage  systems  or  plans,  so 
far  as  they  relate  to  the  public  health. 

7.  The  disposal  and  transportation  of  the  dead. 


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8.  The  inspection  of  food,  drags  and  other  articles  affecting  the  pub- 
lic health. 

9.  Inquiries  into  the  causes  and  means  of  prevention  of  insanity. 

10.  Inquiries  into  the  amount  of  intemperance  from  the  use  of  stimu- 
lants and  narcotics,  and  the  remedies  therefor. 

11.  The  protection  of  human  life. 

12.  Investigations  as  to  the  infectious  diseases  of  animals,  so  far  as 
they  affect  the  public  health,  e.g.,  hydrophobia,  trichinosis,  glanders, 
anthrax,  etc. 

By  another  act  of  the  same  Legislature  entitled  "  An  Act  to  protect 
the  Purity  of  Inland  Waters,"  the  State  Board  of  Health  was  given  the 
general  care  and  oversight  of  all  inland  waters. 

The  history  of  the  development  of  the  work  and  achievements  of  the 
State  Board  of  Health  since  its  reorganization  in  1886  to  the  present 
day  can  be  seen  from  the  reports  of  the  various  departments  of  the 
Board  which  are  presented  here. 


12 


3.    DEPARTMENT  OF  WATER  SUPPLY  AND  SEWERAGE. 

A.     ENGINEERING  DEPARTMENT. 

While  the  Department  of  Water  Supply  and  Sewerage  was  established 
by  an  act  of  the  Legislature  in  1886,  considerable  work  along  the  lines 
afterwards  followed  had  been  previously  done.  For  instance,  in  1872 
the  Legislature  resolved  that  "  the  Board  of  Health  be  requested  to  con- 
sider the  general  subject  of  the  disposition  of  the  sewage  of  towns  and 
cities,  having  in  view,  first,  its  utilization  as  a  fertilizer ;  second,  sanitary 
effects  of  draining  the  same  into  the  waters  of  the  Commonwealth : 
third,  the  increasing  joint  use  of  the  water  courses  for  sewers  and  as 
sources  of  supply  for  domestic  use  by  the  people  of  the  Commonwealth." 

The  Board  in  the  following  year  made  a  comprehensive  report  upon 
sewage  and  sewerage,  the  pollution  of  streams  and  the  water  supply  of 
towns.    This  was  published  in  the  fourth  annual  report  of  the  Board. 

The  fifth  annual  report  of  the  Board  contained  a  special  report  upon 
the  present  condition  of  certain  rivers  of  Massachusetts,  together  with 
considerations  touching  the  water  supply  of  towns. 

The  seventh  annual  report  contained  another  special  report  on  the 
pollution  of  rivers,  the  water  supply,  drainage  and  sewerage  of  the  State 
from  a  sanitar}^  point  of  view  and  the  disposal  of  sewage. 

The  eighth  annual  report  contained  a  special  report  upon  the  pollu- 
tion of  streams,  disposal  of  sewage,  etc. 

The  ninth  annual  report,  that  of  1878,  also  had  a  special  report  on 
drainage  and  health,  sewerage  and  pollution  of  streams. 

The  Legislature  of  1881  requested  the  State  Board  of  Health  to  re- 
port upon  the  pollution  of  the  Blackstone  River  by .  Worcester.  In  the 
year  1881  the  Legislature  authorized  a  commission  to  consider  the  drain- 
age of  the  Mystic  and  Charles  River  valleys. 

The  Massachusetts  Drainage  Commission,  so-called,  was  appointed,  in 
accordance  with  a  resolve  of  the  Legislature,  May,  1884.  The  resolve 
under  which  they  acted  directed  them  to  consider  and  report  upon  a 
general  system  of  drainage  for  the  relief  of  the  valleys  of  the  Mystic. 
Blackstone  and  Charles  rivers  and  for  the  protection  of  the  public  water 
supplies  of  the  cities  and  towns  situated  within  the  basins  of  said  rivers : 
also  to  consider  the  various  methods  of  disposal  of  sewage  and  the  ap- 
plication of  such  methods  to  any  portion  of  the  territory  mentioned 
under  the  resolve.  Their  report  was  published  under  date  of  1886,  and 
in  concluding  the  same  the  commission  stated  that  — 


13 

Precisely  the  same  principle  which  enjoins  a  watchful  care  over  the  exterior 
waters  of  the  State  would  seem  to  call  for  at  least  an  equal  solicitude  con- 
cerning the  abuse  of  its  interior  waters.  But  mindful  of  the  tenderness  with 
which  Massachusetts  has  always  treated  her  industrial  classes,  we  think  it 
would  be  wise  to  embrace  in  the  enactment  one  peculiarly  characteristic 
feature  borrowed  from  the  act  establishing  a  railroad  commission,  and  which 
has  proved  strong  enough  to  enforce  amply  all  the  rights  of  the  public  in 
that  class  of  highways  called  railroads.  This  distinctive  trait  is  the  use  of 
advisory  as  distinguished  from  mandatory  power.  We  think  it  would  be  well, 
then,  for  the  Legislature  to  designate  some  one  or  more  persons  to  look  after 
the  public  interests  in  this  direction.  Let  these  guardians  of  inland  waters 
be  charged  to  acquaint  themselves  with  the  actual  condition  of  all  waters 
within  the  State  as  respects  their  pollution  or  purity,  and  to  inform  them- 
selves particularly  as  to  the  relation  which  that  condition  bears  to  the  health 
and  well-being  of  any  part  of  the  people  of  the  Commonwealth.  Let  them 
do  away,  as  far  as  possible,  with  all  remediable  pollution,  and  use  every 
means  in  their  power  to  prevent  further  vitiation.  Let  them  make  it  their 
business  to  advise  and  assist  cities  or  towns  desiring  a  supply  of  water  or  a 
system  of  sewerage.  They  shall  put  themselves  at  the  disposal  of  manufac- 
tories and  others  using  rivers,  streams  or  ponds,  or  in  any  way  misusing 
them,  to  suggest  the  best  means  of  minimizing  the  amount  of  dirt  in  their 
effluent,  and  to  experiment  upon  methods  of  reducing  or  avoiding  pollution. 
They  shall  warn  the  persistent  violator  of  all  reasonable  regulation  in  the 
management  of  water  of  the  consequences  of  his  acts.  In  a  word,  it  shall 
be  their  especial  function  to  guard  the  public  interest  and  the  public  health 
in  its  relation  with  water,  whether  pure  or  defiled,  with  the  ultimate  hope, 
which  must  never  be  abandoned,  that  sooner  or  later  ways  may  be  found  to 
redeem  and  preserve  all  the  waters  of  the  State.  We  propose  to  clothe  the 
Board  with  no  other  power  than  the  power  to  examine,  advise  and  report, 
except  in  cases  of  violation  of  the  statutes.  —  If  such  a  Board  be  able  to 
commend  itself  by  its  conduct  to  the  approval  of  the  great  court  of  public 
opinion,  it  will  have  no  difficulty,  we  think,  in  materially  reducing  the  dis- 
orders and  abuses  which  are  threatening  to  give  great  trouble  in  future  if  not 
speedily  checked.  If,  however,  we  err  in  this  expectation,  and  more  drastic 
measures  prove  indispensable,  the  mandate  of  the  State  can  always  be 
invoked  to  re-enforce  its  advice. 

Finally,  the  report  of  this  commission  recommended  a  general  act  for 
the  protection  of  the  purity  of  inland  waters.  This  act  in  substance  was 
passed  by  the  Legislature  of  1886,  and  is  given  below.  By  its  provisions 
the  supervision  of  the  water  supply  and  sewerage  of  Massachusetts 
municipalities,  including  such  work  as  should  be  found  necessary  for 
the  carrying  out  of  such  provisions,  was  intrusted  to  the  State  Board  of 
Health. ' 


14 


Acts  of  1886,  Chapter  274. 
An  Act  to  protect  the  purity  of  inland  raters. 
Be  it  enacted,  etc..  as  follows:  — 

Section  1.  The  state  board  of  health  shall  have  the  general  oversight  and 
care  of  all  inland  waters  and  shall  be  furnished  with  maps,  plans  and  docu- 
ments suitable  for  this  purpose,  and  records  of  all  its  doings  in  relation 
thereto  shall  be  kept.  It  may  employ  such  engineers  and  clerks  and  other 
assistants  as  it  may  deem  necessary;  provided,  that  no  contracts  or  other 
acts  which  involve  the  payment  of  money  from  the  treasury  of  the  common- 
wealth shall  be  made  or  done  without  an  appropriation  expressly  made  there- 
for by  the  general  court.  It  shall  annually  on  or  before  the  tenth  day  of 
January  report  to  the  general  court  its  doings  in  the  preceding  year,  and  at 
the  same  time  submit  estimates  of  the  sums  required  to  meet  the  expenses  of 
said  board  in  relation  to  the  care  and  oversight  of  inland  waters  for  the 
ensuing  year;  and  it  shall  also  recommend  legislation  and  suitable  plans  for 
such  systems  of  main  sewers  as  it  may  deem  necessary  for  the  preservation 
of  the  public  health  and  for  the  purification  and  prevention  of  pollution  of 
the  ponds,  streams  and  inland  waters  of  the  commonwealth. 

Section  2.  Said  board  shall,  from  time  to  time  as  it  may  deem  expedient, 
cause  examinations  of  the  said  waters  to  be  made  for  the  purpose  of  ascer- 
taining whether  the  same  are  adapted  for  use  as  sources  of  domestic  water 
supplies  or  are  in  a  condition  likely  to  impair  the  interests  of  the  public 
or  persons  lawfully  using  the  same,  or  imperil  the  pubHc  health.  It  shall 
recommend  measures  for  prevention  of  the  pollution  of  such  waters  and  for 
removal  of  substances  and  causes  of  every  kind  which  may  be  liable  to  cause 
pollution  thereof,  in  order  to  protect  and  develop  the  rights  and  property  of 
the  commonwealth  therein  and  to  protect  the  public  health.  It  shall  have 
authority  to  conduct  experiments  to  determine  the  best  practicable  methods 
of  purification  of  drainage  or  disposal  of  refuse  arising  from  manufacturing 
and  other  industrial  establishments.  For  the  purposes  aforesaid  it  may 
employ  such  expert  assistance  as  may  be  necessary. 

Section  3.  It  shall  from  time  to  time  consult  with  and  advise  the  authori- 
ties of  cities  and  towns,  or  with  corporations,  firms  or  individuals  either 
already  having  or  intending  to  introduce  systems  of  water  supply  or  sewer- 
age, as  to  the  most  appropriate  source  of  supply,  the  best  practicable  method 
of  assuring  the  purity  thereof  or  of  disposing  of  their  sewage,  having  regard 
to  the  present  and  prospective  needs  and  interests  of  other  cities,  towns, 
corporations,  firms  or  individuals  which  may  be  affected  thereby.  It  shall  also 
from  time  to  time  consult  with  and  advise  persons  or  corporations  engaged 
or  intending  to  engage  in  any  manufacturing  or  other  business,  drainage  or 
refuse  from  which  may  tend  to  cause  the  pollution  of  any  inland  water,  as  to 
the  best  practicable  method  of  preventing  such  pollution  by  the  interception, 
disposal  or  purification  of  such  drainage  or  refuse :  provided,  that  no  person 


15 

shall  be  compelled  to  bear  the  expense  of  such  consultation  or  advice,  or  of 
experiments  made  for  the  purpose  of  this  act.  All  such  authorities,  corpora- 
tions, firms  and  individuals  are  hereby  required  to  give  notice  to  said  board 
of  their  intentions  in  the  premises,  and  to  submit  for  its  advice  outlines  of 
their  proposed  plans  or  schemes  in  relation  to  water  supply  and  disposal  of 
drainage  or  refuse.  Said  board  shall  bring  to  the  notice  of  the  attorney- 
general  all  instances  which  may  come  to  its  knowledge  of  omission  to  comply 
with  existing  laws  respecting  the  pollution  of  water  supplies  and  inland  waters 
and  shall  annually  report  to  the  legislature  any  specific  cases  not  covered  by 
the  provisions  of  existing  laws,  which  in  its  opinion  call  for  further  legislation. 

In  1886  the  Board  organized  a  water  supply  and  sewerage  department 
for  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  the  act  given  above.  The  principal 
duties  of  the  Board  under  the  act  were  as  follows :  — 

1.  To  have  the  general  care  and  oversight  of  inland  waters. 

2.  To  have  the  custody  of  maps,  plans,  etc.,  made  for  this  purpose. 

3.  To  recommend  legislation  and  suitable  plans  for  systems  of  main 
sewers. 

4.  To  cause  examinations  of  the  waters  of  ponds  and  streams  to  be 
made. 

5.  To  recommend  measures  to  prevent  the  pollution  of  waters. 

6.  To  conduct  experiments  upon  the  purification  of  sewage. 

7.  To  conduct  experiments  upon  the  disposal  of  manufacturing  refuse. 

8.  To  consult  with  and  advise  the  authorities  of  cities  and  towns  or 
with  others  with  reference  to  water  supply  and  drainage. 

9.  To  consult  with  and  advise  manufactories  with  reference  to  the 
disposal  of  manufacturing  refuse. 

The  act  also  provided  that  authorities  of  cities  and  towns,  and  all 
others  intending  to  introduce  systems  of  water  supply  or  sewerage, 
should  submit  to  the  Board  outlines  of  their  proposed  plans  or  schemes 
in  relation  to  these  subjects,  and  manufacturers  intending  to  engage  in 
any  business,  the  drainage  or  refuse  from  which  might  tend  to  cause 
the  pollution  of  any  inland  water,  should  also  give  notice  to  the  Board 
of  their  intentions.  . 

After  the  Act  of  1886  had  been  in  force  two  years  it  was  amended 
by  the  enactment  of  chapter  375  of  the  acts  of  1888  which  required,  in 
addition  to  the  provisions  of  the  Act  of  1886,  that  all  petitions  to  the 
Legislature  for  authority  to  introduce  systems  of  water  supply,  drainage 
or  sewerage  should  he  accompanied  by  a  copy  of  the  advice  and  recom- 
mendation of  the  State  Board  of  Health  thereon. 

With  the  establishment  of  the  water  supply  and  sewerage  department 
application?  from  cities  and  towns  in  regard  to  water  supply  and  sewer- 


16 

age  began  to  be  received.  There  were  few  at  first,  but  the}7  have  in- 
creased in  number  yearly,  and  up  to  the  present  time  the  total  number 
is  2,372,  the  number  ea,eh  year  being  shown  in  the  fallowing  table:  — 


Year. 

Number  of 
Applications. 

Year. 

Number  of 
Applications. 

1886,    .... 

8 

1899, 

79 

1887, 

22 

1900, 

104 

1888, 

28 

1901, 

105 

1889, 

38 

*1902, 

93 

1890, 

2.3 

1903, 

129 

1891, 

53 

1904, 

125 

1892, 

.  • 

56 

1905, 

105 

1893, 

51 

1906, 

130 

1894, 

53 

1907, 

125 

1895, 

52 

1908, 

134 

1896, 
1897, 

65 
59 

1909, 
1910, 

128 
139 

1898, 

75 

1911, 

176 

When  this  work  was  begun  the  engineering  force  consisted  of  a  chief 
engineer  and  one  assistant.     In  1912  this  force  is  as  follows:  — 

Chief  engineer,    .         .         .    • li 

Assistant  engineers,     ...........     17 

Stenographers    and    clerks,  .........       a 

In  addition  to  the  work  done  by  the  Board  under  the  provisions  of 
the  acts  above  mentioned,  the  consideration  of  numerous  other  special 
problems  relating  to  water  supply,  sewerage  and  kindred  subjects  has 
been  committed  to  the  Board  from  time  to  time  for  its  advice  and 
recommendation. 

Metropolitan  Sewerage  System. 
In  1887  the  Board  was  directed  to  investigate  and  report  a  plan  for 
a  metropolitan  system  of  sewerage,  chiefly  in  the  Mystic  and  Charles 
Biver  valleys  under  the  following  legislative  resolves:  — 

Resolves  of  1887,  Chapter  95. 
Resolve  relating  to  sewage  disposal  in  the  cystic  and  charles  river 

VALLEYS. 

Resolved,  That  the  state  board  of  health  is  hereby  authorized  and  directed 
to  consider  and  report  a  general  system  of  drainage  and  sewerage  for  the 
relief  of  the  valley  of  Mystic  river,  and  so  much  of  the  valley  of  Charles 


Works  for  the  Treatment  of  Paper  Mill  Wastes  in  the  Prevention  of  River  Pollution. 


Works  for  the  Treatment  of  Woolen  Mill  Wastes  in  the  Prevention  of  River  Pollution. 


Discharge  of  Sewage  into  Boston  Harbor  from  North  Metropolitan  District. 


Discharge  of  Sewage  into  Boston  Harbor  from  South  Metropolitan  District. 


17 

river,  if  any,  whose  relief  in  the  opinion  of  said  board  is  to  be  sought  in 
conjunction  with  the  Mystic  valley  system,  and  for  such  cities  and  towns,  or 
parts  of  cities  and  towns  as  may,  in  the  opinion  of  said  board,  be  best  relieved 
by  the  use  of  said  system;  and  so  much  of  the  report  of  the  commissioners 
appointed  under  resolve  approved  May  twenty-eighth,  in  the  year  eighteen 
hundred  and  eighty-four,  as  relates  to  the  cities  and  towns,  or  parts  of  cities 
and  towns,  which  said  board  shall  incorporate  in  the  system  to  be  reported 
under  this  resolve,  is  hereby  referred  to  said  board  for  its  further  considera- 
tion, and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board,  — 

First.  To  designate  the  cities  and  towns,  and  parts  of  cities  and  towns, 
which  shall  be  tributary  to  and  embraced  in  the  district  and  system  so  to  be 
reported,  and  to  define  the  same  by  their  report,  with  plans  and  maps. 

Second.  To  define  and  show,  by  suitable  plans  and  maps,  such  trunk  line 
and  main  branches  as  it  shall  recommend  to  be  constructed  with  outlet. 

Third.  To  define  the  methods  by  which  said  cities  and  towns,  or  parts  of 
any  eity  or  town,  may  utilize  said  trunk  line  and  main  branches  as  an  outlet 
of  a  system  of  sewerage  and  drainage  for  said  respective  cities  and  towns, 
and  said  parts  of  cities  and  towns,  and  to  show  the  same  by  plans  and  maps. 

Fourth.  To  cause  such  surveys  and  levels  to  be  made  as  will  enable  said 
board  to  determine  with  accuracy  the  location  and  grades  of  said  trunk  line 
and  main  branches,  and  also  such  surveys  and  levels  in  said  cities  and  towns 
and  parts  of  cities  and  towns  as  will  enable  said  board  to  determine  with 
accuracy  the  methods  by  which  said  cities  and  towns  and  parts  of  cities  and 
towns  may  respectively  utilize  said  trunk  line  and  main  branches  and  to 
report  such  methods  by  plans  showing  the  main  lines  by  which  each  may  so 
provide  for  itself  a  system  of  sewerage  and  drainage  with  its  outlet  into 
said  trunk  line  or  main  branches. 

Fifth.  To  define  the  size  and  capacity  of  said  trunk  line  and  main  branches 
and  the  materials  of  which  they  should  be  constructed  and  manner  of  con- 
struction, and  such  other  particulars  as  will  enable  said  board  to  determine 
the  probable  expense  thereof. 

Sixth.  The  expenses  of  surveys,  maps  and  plans  made  to  show  the  method 
by  which  any  city  or  town,  or  part  of  city  or  town,  may  utilize  said  trunk 
line  and'  main  branches  shall  be  separately  kept,  and  the  same,  showing  the 
amount  expended  in  each,  together  with  the  expenses  of  the  location  and 
grade,  maps  and  plans  of  said  trunk  line  and  main  branches,  together  with 
all  other  expenses  in  the  premises,  and  the  items  thereof,  shall  be  reported 
to  the  governor  and  council,  and  all  such  costs  and  expenses  shall  be  paid 
out  of  the  treasury  of  the  Commonwealth,  on  bills  to  be  approved  by  the 
governor  and  council. 

Seventh.  Each  city  or  town  which  wholly  or  in  part  said  board  shall  con- 
sider should  form  a  part  of  the  territory  to  be  embraced  in  the  system  to  be 
reported  shall  be  notified  thereof  by  said  board  as  soon  as  said  board  shall 
determine  the  cities  and  towns  and  parts  of  cities  and  towns  which  shall  con- 
stitute said  sewerage  and  drainage  district.     Said  notice  shall  contain  the 


18 

names  of  the  cities  and  towns  wholly,  and  shall  designate  the  portions  of  the 
cities  and  towns  not  wholly  but  in  part,  incorporated  therein,  and  each  of 
such  cities  and  towns  may  confer  with  said  board  in  Respect  to  such  drain- 
age and  sewerage  system,  and  on  request  in  writing  be  heard  by  said  board 
on  matters  relating  to  the  method  of  its  utilizing  said  trunk  line  and  main 
branches  and  the  surveys,  levels,  maps  and  plans  to  determine  and  show 
the  same,  and  under  the  superintendence  of  said  board  may,  at  its  own 
expense,  make  its  said  surveys,  levels,  maps  and  plans  for  the  use  of  said 
board;  but  all  questions  upon  which  any  city  or  town  shall  desire  to  be  heard 
shall  be  submitted  to  said  board  in  writing  with  such  request. 

Eighth.  Said  board  shall  also  consider  whether  any  city  or  town  within 
such  district  can  more  advantageously  provide  for  itself  a  system  of  sewer- 
age and  drainage  by  itself  and  not  as  a  part  of  said  general  system,  and 
shall  hear  such  city  or  town  thereon  if  it  shall  so  request,  and  shall  also 
make  report  thereof. 

Ninth.  To  ascertain  and  report  the  cost  of  the  construction  of  said! 
trunk  line  and  main  branches  and  outlet,  and  of  the  annual  expense  of 
operating  the  same,  and  also  what  cities  and  towns,  or  parts  of  cities  and 
towns,  would  be  obliged  to  punrp  their  sewage  or  any  part  thereof,  at  what 
places,  the  cost  of  the  works  therefor  and  the  annual  expenses  thereof: 
provided,  however,  the  whole  amount  expended  under  the  provisions  of  this 
resolve  shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  ten  thousand  dollars;  and  reports  under 
the  same  shall  be  made  by  the  state  board  of  health  to  the  general  court  on 
or  before  the  first  Wednesday  of  January,  in  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and 
eighty-nine.     [Approved  June  16,  1887. 

. 
Resolves  of  1888,  Chapter  63. 

Resolve  providing  for  further  investigations,  relative  to  sewage  dis- 
posal IN  THE  MYSTIC  AND  CHARLES  RIVER  VALLEYS. 

Resolved,  That  the  state  board  of  health  be  requested  to  designate  some 
method  for  the  disposal  of  the  sewage  of  such  cities  and  towns  as  are  em- 
braced within  the  lower  valley  of  the  Charles  river,  in  the  report  of  the 
commissioners  appointed  under  chapter  sixty-three  of  the  resolves  of  the 
year  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-four,  as  they  may  not  include  in  their 
report  under  chapter  ninety-five  of  the  resolves  of  the  year  eighteen  hun- 
dred and  eighty-seven,  and  so  much  of  said  report  as  relates  thereto  is 
hereby  referred  to  said  board  for  its  further  consideration.  Such  designa- 
tion shall  be  made  as  a  part  of  the  report  required  by  chapter .  ninety-five 
of  the  resolves  of  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-seven,  and  rhe 
expense  thereof  charged  to  the  appropriation  provided  for  in  chapter  forty- 
two  of  the  resolves  of  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-eight.  [Ap- 
proved April  24,  1888. 

The  territory  whose  relief  was  provided  for  under  these  resolves  in- 
cluded an  area  of  130   square  miles   and  contained   20   municipalities 


19 

having  a  population  aggregating  about  one-sixth  of  the  total  population 
of  the  State  at  that  time.  The  Board  considered  the  problem  from 
various  points  of  view,  as  follows :  — 

1.  The  method  of  discharging  crude  sewage  into  a  strong  tidal  cur- 
rent that  will  convey  it  to  sea,  whence  it  cannot  return. 

2.  The  method  of  partial  purification  by  filtration  upon  the  bed  recom- 
mended by  the  Massachusetts  Drainage  Commission  by  report  of  Dec. 
24,  1885,  or  upon  some  other  bed  or  beds. 

3.  By  chemical  precipitation  and  discharge  of  the  clarified  effluent 
into  outgoing  tide  at  one  or  more  points. 

The  Board,  as  a  result  of  its  studies,  recommended  systems  of  sewer- 
age for  the  Mystic  and  Charles  Eiver  valleys  and  the  various  towns 
therein,  as  required  by  the  acts,  and  recommended  further  that  the 
sewage  be  discharged  into  the  sea  through  an  outlet  located  near  Deer 
Island  Light  off  the  northerly  entrance  to  Boston  Harbor.  The  plan 
was  adopted  by  the  Legislature,  and  a  special  commission,  known  as 
the  Metropolitan  Sewerage  Commission,  was  appointed  to  construct  the 
works  in  accordance  with  the  plans  designed  by  the  Board.  The  works 
were  completed  at  a  total  cost  of  approximately  $5,500,000,  and  have 
'been  in  use  continuously  since  1894. 

Improvement  op  Charles  Eiver. 
In  1893  the  State  Board  of  Health,  acting  jointly  with  the  Metro- 
politan Park  Commission,  was  required  by  the  Legislature  in  the  fol- 
lowing act  to  investigate  the  sanitary  condition  of  the  lower  part  of 
the  course  of  the  Charles  Eiver  where  it  flows  through  the  city  of  Bos- 
ton and  adjacent  portions  of  the  metropolitan  district  and  report  a  plan 
for  its  improvement :  — 

Acts  of  1893,  Chapter  475. 
An  Act  to  provide  for  the  improvement  of  Charles'  river. 

Section  1.  The  board  of  metropolitan  park  commissioners,  established 
under  the  provisions  of  chapter  four  hundred  and  seven  of  the  acts  of  the 
year  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-three,  and  the  state  board  of  health,  sitting 
as  a  joint  board,  shall  investigate  the  sanitary  condition  and  prepare  plans 
for  the  improvement  of  the  beds,  shores  and  waters  of  the  Charles  river, 
between  Charles  river  bridge  and  the  Waltham  line  on  Charles  river,  and  for 
the  removal  of  any  nuisances  therefrom,  and  report  with  their  recommenda- 
tions to  the  next  general  court  on  or  before  the  first  "Wednesday  in  February. 

Section  2.  Said  commissioners  may  employ  engineers  and  experts  and 
incur  such  expenses  as  may  be  necessary  to  carry  out  the  provisions  of  this 
act,  and  may  expend  for  such  purpose  a  sum  not  exceeding  five  thousand 


20 

dollars.     All  bills  shall  be  approved  and  filed  with  the  auditor  and  allowed 
in  the  same  manner  as  other  claims  against  the  commonwealth. 
Section  3.    This  act  shall  take  effect  upon  its  passage.  *" 

The  Joint  Board  subsequently  recommended  the  construction  of  a 
dam  near  Craigie  bridge  between  Boston  and  Cambridge,  a  short  dis- 
tance above  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  the  creation  of  a  fresh  water 
basin  over  8  miles  in  length  in  the  heart  of  the  metropolitan  district. 
After  further  investigation  by  other  commissions  the  plans  were  carried 
out  as  recommended  in  the  report  of  the  Joint  Board  at  a  cost  of  ap- 
proximately $3,993,000. 

By  the  provision  of  an  act  passed  in  1894  the  Joint  Board  was  re- 
quired to  consider  the  improvement  of  an  additional  section  of  the 
Charles  River  lying  above  the  portion  provided  for  in  the  original  legis- 
lation. After  investigations,  plans  for  the  improvement  of  that  section 
of  the  river  were  reported  by  the  Joint  Board  to  the  Legislature  in  May, 
1896.  The  recommendations  of  this  report  relating  to  the  ownership 
and  control  of  the  region  included  in  the  report  have  been  carried  out, 
and  large  areas  along  this  river,  with  its  great  advantages  for  outdoor 
recreation,  have  been  secured  and  set  apart  for  the  use  of  the  public. 

Improvement  of  the  Concord  and  Sudbury  Eivers. 
The  Concord  River  and  its  main  tributary,  the  Sudbury,  drain  an 
extensive  area  of  level  country  in  the  east  central  part  of  Massachusetts, 
and  the  rivers  are  bordered  for  many  miles  of  their  courses  by  extensive 
meadows  which  were  usually  wet  and  often  inundated,  even  in  the  sum- 
mer season.  Previous  investigations  had  shown  that  the  conditions 
would  be  materially  improved  by  removing  certain  bars  in  these  rivers 
which  obstructed  the  flow,  and  in  1894  the  State  Board  of  Health  was 
directed  to  expend  $20,000  in  the  improvement  of  these  rivers  by  dredg- 
ing and  removing  the  bars  which  impeded  the  flow  of  the  streams.  The 
amount  appropriated  was  subsequently  increased  to  provide  for  addi- 
tional work,  including  the  reconstruction  of  a  bridge,  and  the  total 
expenditure  was  $23,000.  The  work  was  completed  in  1897,  and  the 
expected  improvement  in  the  condition  of  the  adjacent  meadows  has 
been  fully  realized. 

Metropolitan  Water  Supply. 
By  the  provisions  of  chapter  459  of  the  Acts  of  the  year  1893  entitled 
"  An  Act  relative  to  procuring  a  Water  Supply  for  the  City  of  Boston 
and  its  Suburbs,"  the  Board  was  directed  to  prepare  a  plan  for  providing 


21 

a  water  supply  for  the  population  within  a  radius  of  10  miles  from  the 
State  House  in  the  city  of  Boston.    The  act  is  as  follows :  — 

Section  1.  The  state  board  of  health  is  hereby  authorized  and  directed 
to  investigate,  consider  and  report  upon  the  question  of  a  water  supply  for 
the  city  of  Boston  and  its  suburbs  within  a  radius  of  ten  miles  from  the 
state  house,  and  for  such  other  cities  and  towns  as  in  its  opinion  should  be 
included  in  connection  therewith. 

Section  2.  The  said  board  shall  forthwith  proceed  to  investigate  and  con- 
sider this  subject,  including  all  questions  relating  to  the  quantity  of  water  to 
be  obtained  from  available  sources,  its  quality,  the  best  methods  of  protecting 
the  purity  of  the  water,  the  construction,  operation  and  maintenance  of  works 
for  storing,  conveying  or  purifying  the  water,  the  cost  of  the  same,  the 
damages  to  property,  and  all  other  matters  pertaining  to  the  subject. 

Section  3.  The  said  board  shall  have  power  to  employ  such  engineering 
and  other  assistance  and  to  incur  such  expenses  as  may  be  necessary  for 
carrying  out  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

Section  4.  The  said  board  shall  report  fully  with  plans  and  estimates  to 
the  legislature  on  or  before  the  first  Wednesday  in  January  in  the  year 
eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-five,  and  shall  append  to  its  report  drafts 
of  bills  intended  to  accomplish  the  recommendations  of  the  board. 

Section  5.  The  total  amount  of  money  which  shall  be  expended  out  of 
the  treasury  of  the  commonwealth  in  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  this  act 
shall  not  exceed  forty  thousand  dollars.  The  commonwealth  shall  be  reim- 
bursed for  the  amount  expended  by  the  cities  and  towns  which  are  to  receive 
the  benefit  of  the  system  recommended  in  the  report,  in  proportion  to  the 
population  of  each. 

Section  6.  Before  incurring  any  expense  the  board  shall  from  time  to 
time  estimate  the  amounts  required  and  shall  submit  the  same  to  the  governor 
and  council  for  their  approval,  and  no  expense  shall  be  incurred  beyond  the 
amount  so  estimated  and  approved. 

Section  7.     This  act  shall  take  effect  upon  its  passage. 

The  Board  under  this  act  presented  to  the  Legislature  in  1895  a  re- 
port recommending  the  construction  of  a  great  reservoir  on  the  south 
branch  of  the  Nashua  Biver,  a  stream  draining  the  region  about  Mt. 

j!  Wachusett  in  the  hilly  country  in  the  north  central  part  of  the  State. 

|i  The  plans  included  the  continued  use  of  certain  portions  of  the  former 
water  supply  system  of  the  city  of  Boston  and  other  communities,  and 
the  connection  of  the  new  system  with  the  various  parts  of  the  metro- 
politan district  by  suitable  reservoirs,  aqueducts,  pipe  lines  and  other 
works.  The  plans  of  the  Board  were  accepted  by  the  Legislature  of 
1895,  and  the  construction  of  the  works  in  accordance  with  these  plans 
was    committed    to    a    special    commission.  —  the    Metropolitan    Water 


22 

Board.  The  construction  of  the  works  was  at  once  begun,  and  the  great 
reservoir  known  as  the  Wachusett  Eeservoir,  having  a  capacity  of  65,- 
000,000,000  gallons,  was  filled  to  overflowing  for  the  first  time  in  the 
spring  of  1908. 

The  total  cost  of  the  works,  including  amounts  paid  for  existing  works 
in  other  cities  and  towns,  utilized  in  connection  with  the  metropolitan 
system,  has  been  (up  to  1912)  $41,933,000. 

Salem  axd  Peabody  Sewerage. 

In  the  year  1895  the  Board  was  required  to  consider  and  report  plans 
for  the  collection  and  disposal  of  the  sewage  of  the  city  of  Salem  and 
the  town  of  Peabody,  under  the  provisions  of  chapter  112  of  the  Re- 
solves of  the  year  1895. 

Plans  for  a  general  system  of  sewerage  and  sewage  disposal  for  the 
city  of  Salem  and  town  of  Peabody  were  reported,  as  required  by  the 
resolve,  to  the  Legislature  of  1897.  These  plans  provided  for  collecting 
the  sewage  and  also  the  great  quantities  of  manufacturing  wastes  dis- 
charged from  tanneries  and  allied  industries  in  both  Salem  and  Peabody, 
and  discharging  them  into  Salem  Harbor  at  a  point  where  they  would 
not  cause  the  pollution  of  neighboring  shores.  The  works  were  subse- 
quently constructed  in  general  accordance  with  the  plans  recommended, 
and  were  completed  and  their  operation  begun  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
year  1906. 

Improvement  of  Neponset  River. 

By  the  provisions  of  chapter  83  of  the  Resolves  of  the  year  1895  the 
State  Board  of  Health  was  directed  to  investigate  the  sanitary  condition 
of  the  Neponset  River  and  the  extensive  meadows  through  which  it 
flows  in  the  towns  of  Walpole,  Norwood,  Sharon,  Canton,  Milton  and 
Hyde  Park,  and  to  report  to  the  Legislature  a  plan  for  the  improve- 
ment of  the  river  and  meadows. 

The  Neponset  River  drains  an  area  of  about  170  square  miles  in  the 
southeastern  part  of  Massachusetts,  and  in  the  lower  part  of  its  course 
forms  the  southerly  boundary  of  the  city  of  Boston,  finding  an  outlet 
into  Dorchester  Bay  in  the  southerly  part  of  Boston  Harbor. 

The  river,  at  the  time  this  resolve  was  passed,  was  being  very  badly 
polluted  by  sewage,  and  especially  by  foul  drainage  from  numerous  man- 
ufacturing works  of  various  kinds,  particularly  paper  mills,  tanneries  and 
woolen  mills.  In  the  central  portion  of  its  course  the  polluted  river 
meanders  with  a  sluggish  current  for  many  miles  through  extensive  fens, 
known  as  the  Fowl  Meadows,  which  cover  an  area  of  4,000  acres  or  more, 


23 

much  of  which  is  wet  or  partially  inundated  throughout  the  greater  part 
of  the  year. 

The  Board  reported  plans  to  the  Legislature  of  1897  both  for  re- 
lieving the  river  of  pollution  and  for  draining  the  Fowl  Meadows,  but 
action  upon  this  matter  was  delayed  until  1902,  when  a  law  looking  to 
the  prevention  of  the  pollution  of  the  river  was  enacted.  This  law  was 
subsequently  (in  1906)  amended  so  as  to  provide  a  penalty  for  the 
pollution  of  the  stream.  Since  the  enactment  of  this  law  much  of  the 
sewage  formerly  discharged  into  the  river  has  been  diverted,  or  is  being 
purified  within  the  watershed,  and  at  nearly  all  of  the  manufacturing 
establishments  works  have  been  constructed  which  provide  for  the  treat- 
ment of  the  manufacturing  wastes. 

In  1911  an  act  was  passed  to  provide  for  the  deepening  and  improve- 
ment of  the  river  throughout  the  Fowl  Meadows  in  order  that  efficient 
drainage  may  be  provided  for  that  objectionable  area,  which  has  evi- 
dently long  exercised  a  deterrent  influence  upon  the  growth  of  popula- 
tion over  a  very  wide  area  in  this  region. 

Improvement  of  Green  Harbor. 

In  1896  the  State  Board  of  Health,  sitting  as  a  Joint  Board  with 
the  Board  of  Harbor  and  Land  Commissioners,  was  required  to  consider 
the  question  of  improving  Green  Harbor  in  the  town  of  Marshfield, 
where  it  was  alleged  that,  by  the  construction  of  a  dike  reclaiming  1,500 
acres  of  marsh  land  at  the  edge  of  the  sea  by  shutting  off  a  former  tidal 
estuary  known  as  the  Green  Harbor  Biver,  the  harbor  supplied  by  this 
river  had  been  materially  damaged  and  its  usefulness  largely  destroyed. 

The  Joint  Board  reported  the  results  of  its  investigations  to  the  Legis- 
lature of  1898,  recommending  that  the  dike  be  retained  and  the  harbor 
improved  and  maintained  by  dredging.  The  subject  of  this  harbor  was 
again  referred  to  the  -Joint  Board  by  the  Legislature  in  1908,  and  the 
question  again  considered. 

The  Joint  Board  again  reported  against  the  removal  of  the  dike  and 
recommended  the  maintenance  of  the  harbor,  if  its  continued  mainte- 
nance should  be  decided  upon,  by  other  plans. 

South  Metropolitan  Sewerage  System. 

Under  the  provisions  of  chapter  65  of  the  Besolves  of  the  Legislature 

of  1899  the  State  Board  of  Health  was  directed  to  consider  the  general 

subject  of  the  discharge  of  sewage  into  Boston  Harbor  and  the  disposal 

of  sewage  for  the  metropolitan  districts  of  the  Commonwealth,  and  to 


24 

report  a  plan  for  an  outlet  for  a  high  level  gravity  or  other  sewer  for 
the  relief  of  the  Charles  and  Neponset  River  valleys. 

Under  this  resolve  the  Board,  after  investigation,  recommended  the 
discharge  of  the  sewage  of  the  Charles  and  JSTeponset  River  valleys  — 
later  known  as  the  south  metropolitan  sewerage  district  —  into  the  sea 
at  two  points  north  of  Peddock's  Island  in  the  southerly  part  of  Boston 
Harbor.  The  plan  was  adopted  by  the  Legislature,  and  the  works  which 
were  constructed  by  the  Metropolitan  Sewerage  Commission  were  com- 
pleted and  first  operated  in  the  year  1904.  This  outlet  is  located  at  the 
bottom  of  the  harbor  where  the  water  is  30  feet  in  depth  at  low  tide,  , 
and  the  quantity  of  sewage  discharged  here  at  the  present  time  amounts 
to  more  than  40  million  gallons  per  day. 

Improvement   of   the   Sanitary   Condition  of  the   Concord  and 

Sudbury  Rivers. 

The  Board  was  directed  by  the  provisions  of  chapter  65  of  the  Re- 
solves of  1900  to  investigate  the  sanitary  condition  of  the  Concord  and 
Sudbury  rivers  and  report  a  plan  for  their  improvement. 

These  rivers,  especially  the  Sudbury,  were  being  badly  polluted  by 
sewage  and  manufacturing  wastes,  chiefly  by  the  wastes  from  woolen 
mills  at  Saxonville  and  Maynard.  A  plan  was  prepared  for  disposing 
of  the  wastes  from  these  mills  and  preventing  pollution  from  other 
sources  and  was  presented  to  the  Legislature  of  1901,  but  no  action  has 
3ret  been  taken. 

Discharge  of  Refuse  into  Boston  Harbor. 

In  the  year  1903  the  State  Board  of  Health  was  directed  to  report 
upon  the  dumping  of  garbage  and  rubbish  into  the  harbor  and  along 
the  seacoast  of  Massachusetts  Bay. 

The  results  of  the  investigation  were  reported  to  the  Legislature  in 
1904,  and  more  stringent  regulations  on  harbor  dumping  have  since 
been  adopted. 

Purification   of   Mystic   River   and   Ale  wife   Brook   and   their 

Tributaries. 
In  the  year  1904  the  Legislature  passed  an  act  requiring  the  State 
Board  of  Health  to  examine  the  Mystic  River  and  Alewife  Brook  and 
their  tributaries  and  present  a  report  of  its  investigations  with  recom- 
mendations for  purifying  those  waters  and  preventing  further  injury 
to  the  public  health  by  reason  of  the  unsanitary  conditions  existing  in 
the  valleys  of  these  streams. 


25 

The  Board  found,  as  a  result  of  its  investigations,  that  Alewife 
Brook  was  badly  polluted  by  sewage  and  manufacturing  wastes  and 
that  malaria  was  prevailing  to  an  alarming  extent  in  the  region  about 
the  Alewife  Brook  marshes,  an  extensive  tract  of  low  land  lying  partly 
in  the  cities  of  Cambridge  and  Somerville  and  partly  in  the  towns  of 
Arlington  and  Belmont,  and  having  an  aggregate  area  of  about  1,000 
acres.  Portions  of  these  marshes  were  found  to  be  below  the  level  of 
ordinary  high  tide,  and  the  Board  recommended  the  construction  of  a 
dam  across  the  Mystic  Eiver  at  Cradock  bridge  to  maintain  the  water 
at  a  constant  level  about  7  feet  above  low  tide,  and  the  enlargement  of 
the  channels  of  the  streams  and  construction  of  suitable  drainage  chan- 
nels in  the  Alewife  Brook  marshes  to  provide  proper  drainage  and 
prevent  the  breeding  of  mosquitoes  therein.  The  prevention  of  the 
pollution  of  the  streams  was  also  recommended.  The  Legislature  sub- 
sequently provided  for  the  construction  of  works  in  general  accordance 
with  the  plans  recommended,  and  a  dam  across  the  Mystic  Eiver  has 
lately  been  completed. 

Water  Supply  of  Lynn. 

By  the  provisions  of  chapter  509  of  the  Acts  of  the  year  1906,  the 
State  Board  of  Health  and  the  Water  Board  of  the  City  of  Lynn  were 
authorized  and  directed  to  investigate  plans  for  enlarging  and  improving 
the  water  supply  of  that  city. 

The  results  of  the  investigation  were  reported  to  the  Legislature  of 
1907. 

Improvement  and  Enlargement  of  Cemeteries. 

By  an  order  of  the  Legislature  of  1907  the  State  Board  of .  Health 
was  directed  to  investigate  the  conditions  under  which  new  cemeteries 
should  be  established  and  old  ones  enlarged.  The  Board  reported  the 
results  of  its  investigations  to  the  Legislature  of  1908,  and  a  law  was 
enacted  providing  for  the  regulation  of  the  use  of  cemeteries  by  local 
boards  of  health  or  by  the  State  Board  of  Health  in  cases  where  ceme- 
teries were  to  be  located  within  the  watershed  of  any  source  of  public 
water  supply. 

Improvement  of  Lake  Quannapowitt  and  the  Lands  bordering 

THEREON. 

On  June  11,  1908,  the  Legislature  directed  the  State  Board  of  Health 
to  examine  Lake  Quannapowitt  and  its  watershed  and  make  such  rec- 
ommendations as  it  might  deem  expedient  relative  to  the  improvement 
of  the  low  lands  about  this  lake.  The  Board  presented  the  results  of  its 
investigations  to  the  Legislature  of  1909. 


26 


Merrimack  Eivee. 

By  the  provisions  of  chapter  114  of  the  Besolfes  of  1908  the  Stati 
Board  of  Health  was  directed  to  investigate  the  sanitary  condition  o 
the  Merrimack  Eiver  and  report  thereon  to  the  General  Court. 

The  results  of  this  investigation  showed  the  need  of  better  regulation 
of  the  condition  of  this  river,  which  had  hitherto  been  exempted  fron 
the  general  laws  relative  to  the  pollution  of  rivers  in  Massachusetts,  and 
in  accordance  with  the  recommendations  of  the  Board  presented  in  ra 
report  to  the  Legislature  of  1909,  the  Merrimack  Biver  was  included  in 
the  laws  relating  to  the  prevention  of  the  pollution  of  streams.  By  the 
provisions  of  another  law  the  Board  is  directed  to  report  to  the  Legisla- 
ture upon  the  improvement  of  the  river  whenever  its  condition  becomes 
objectionable. 

Water  Supply  of  Salem,  Beverly  and  Peabody. 
By  the  provisions  of  chapter  54  of  the  Besolves  of  the  year  1911  the 
State  Board  of  Health  was  authorized  and  directed  to  consider  and  re- 
port on  the  matter  of  a  water  supply  for  the  cities  of  Salem  and  Beverly 
and  the  town  of  Peabody  taken  from  the  Ipswich  Biver  and  its  tribu 
taries  or  from  any  other  source  or  sources  that  the  Board  might  find 
available.    The  results  of  this  investigation  were  presented  to  the  Legis 
lature  in  1911  and  1912. 

Lake  Cochituate. 
Under  the  provisions  of  chapter  87  of  the  Besolves  of  the  year  1911 
the  State  Board  of  Health  and  the  Metropolitan  Water  and  Sewerage 
Board,  acting  jointly,  were  requested  to  make  an  examination  of  the 
water  of  Lake  Cochituate  and  report  relative  to  the  protection  of  the 
purity  of  the  water.  The  recommendations  of  the  Board  were  presented 
to  the  Legislature  of  1912. 

Construction  of  a  Dam  to  replace  the  Essex  Bridge  between 

Salem  and  Beverly. 
Under  the  provisions  of  chapter  84  of  the  Besolves  of  the  year  1912 
the  Board  is  directed  to  consider  and  report  upon  the  practicability  of 
constructing  a  dam  at  the  head  of  Beverly  Harbor,  between  Salem  and 
Beverly,  to  improve  the  sanitary  conditions  of  the  North,  Danvers  and 
Bass  rivers. 


27 


Improvement  of  Shores  of  Dorchester  Bay,  Boston. 
Under  the  provisions  of  Chapter  133  of  the  Besolves  of  1912  the  State 
Board  of  Health,  acting  jointly  with  the  Directors  of  the  Port  of  Boston, 
is  required  to  investigate  the  advisability  and   cost  of  improving  the 
shores  of  Dorchester  Bay. 

B.     WORK    OF    THE    STATE    HOUSE    LABORATORIES    AND 
THE    LAWRENCE    EXPERIMENT    STATION. 

At  the  time  of  beginning  the  work  of  the  department  of  water  supply 
and  sewerage,  laboratories  for  the  examination  of  water  and  sewage  were 
established  at  the  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology,  and  in  1887  an 
experiment  station  for  investigations  in  regard  to  the  purification  of 
sewage,  filtration  of  water  and  allied  subjects  was  established  at  Law- 
rence. This  station  was  equipped  with  filters  and  chemical  and  bac- 
teriological laboratories  for  the  proper  study  of  the  subjects  mentioned. 
The  laboratory  force  at  the  Institute  of  Technology  consisted  at  first  of 
a  chief  chemist,  three  assistants,  a  biologist  and  bacteriologist  with  two 
assistants.  The  laboratories  for  water  and  sewage  analysis  were  con- 
tinued at  the  Institute  of  Technology  until  1896,  when  they  were  removed 
to  the  State  House. 

The  force  employed  at  present  at  the  State  House  laboratories  and  at 
the  Lawrence  Experiment  Station  is  as  follows  :  — 

Chief  chemist, t        .        .         .  1 

Assistant  chemists, 11 

Bacteriologists, 2 

Biologist, 1 

Stenographers  and  clerks,    ..........  3 

Other  assistants,  ............  2 

The  report  of  1887  contained  a  summary  of  the  work  of  the  water 
supply  and  sewerage  department  in  regard  to  the  examination  of  water 
supplies,  sewage  disposal  systems,  pollution  of  rivers,  etc.,  and  also  the 
first  report  in  regard  to  the  work  of  the  experiment  station. 

In  1890  two  special  reports  were  published.    As  was  stated :  — 

The  general  subject  of  the  first  volume  is  the  "  Examination  of  Water 
Supplies  of  the  State,"  and  embraces  not  only  an  examination  of  the  water 
supplies  already  in  use,  but  also  of  the  rivers  and  of  many  available  sources 
of  supply  not  now  in  use. 

The  topography  of  the  Commonwealth  is  peculiarly  fitted  for  this  compre- 
hensive study,  embracing,  as  it  does,  waters  of  varying  character,  from  the 


28 

more  highly  colored  waters  of  the  marshes  and  bogs  of  the  low  lands,  to  the 
clearer  waters  of  the  Berkshire  hills,  including  the  polluted  waters  of  thickly 
settled  regions  and  the  unpolluted  waters  of  uninhabited  regions. 

This  volume  contained  descriptions  of  the  water  supplies  of  the  State, 
embracing  135  supplies  furnished  to  cities  and  towns  and  public  institu- 
tions. It  also  contained  the  results  of  analyses  of  these  water  supplies. 
Certain  sections  of  this  report  dealt  with  the  classification  of  water  sup- 
plies, interpretation  of  analyses  and  discussion  of  special  topics.  The 
topics  discussed  were  as  follows  :  — 

The  distinction  between  normal  and  polluted  waters. 

The  chemical  evidence  of  pollution  in  waters. 

Normal  chlorine. 

The  idea  of  permanence  and  of  various  degrees  of  susceptibility  to 
decay  in  organic  matter  in  water. 

The  absence  of  dissolved  oxygen,  and  the  putrefactive  changes  of  or- 
ganic matter  in  some  waters  at  considerable  depths. 

The  effect  of  growing  plants  in  obliterating  evidences  of  decay. 

The  chemical  evidence  of  bacterial  action  in  the  state  of  change  of  or- 
ganic matter. 

The  essential  differences  in  character  of  surface  and  ground  waters 
which  influence  the  interpretation  of  analyses. 

The  influence  of  the  season  of  the  year  on  the  composition  of  surface 
waters. 

The  discussion  of  "  Special  Topics  relating  to  the  Quality  of  Water 
Supplies  "  contained  much  information  of  a  practical  bearing  upon  the 
selection  of  sources  of  public  water  supply  and  the  methods  of  storage 
both  of  ground  and  of  surface  waters. 

Special  prominence  was  given  to  the  effect  of  storage  upon  the  color, 
taste  and  odor  of  water,  as  well  as  the  chemical  composition. 

A  portion  of  this  section  was  devoted  to  the  investigation  of  the  char- 
acter of  the  water  in  deep  ponds  at  different  depths  and  at  different 
seasons  of  the  year. 

Studies  were  made  of  the  organisms  which  caused  serious  annoyance 
from  their  periodical  development  in  certain  supplies,  and  a  general 
statement  was  made  of  the  results  and  observations  upon  the  natural 
filtration  of  water  in  several  places  in  the  State. 

An  important  chapter  was  entitled  "  The  Pollution  and  the  Self -puri- 
fication of  Streams."  This  contained  a  summary  of  observations  upon 
the  condition  of  some  of  the  principal  streams  of  the  State,  large  and 
small,  into  which  sewage  was  continuously  discharged. 


29 

The  second  special  volume  published  in  1890,  contained  the  methods 
and  results  of  the  experimental  investigations  of  the  Board  up  to  that 
date  upon  the  purification  of  sewage  by  filtration  and  by  chemical  pre- 
cipitation, and  upon  the  intermittent  filtration  of  water  made  at  the 
experiment  station  at  Lawrence.  The  report  gives  a  description  of  the 
experiment  station  and  states  the  object  of  the  work,  namely :  "  to  deter- 
mine the  fundamental  principles  of  filtration  not  previously  established, 
and  to  learn  what  can  practically  be  accomplished  by  filters  made  of  some 
of  the  widely  varying  material  found  in  suitable  localities  for  filtration 
areas,  that  there  may  be  deduced  from  these  results,  together  with  the 
quality  and  physical  characteristics  of  the  materials  used,  the  probable 
efficiency  of  other  materials  to  be  found  throughout  the  State." 

The  report  stated  also  that  "  while  deductions  are  fully  made  in  the 
light  of  this  beginning  of  the  science  of  filtration,  all  of  the  data  of 
chemical  and  biological  analysis,  and,  as  far  as  may  be,  the  attendant 
circumstances,  are  recorded,  that  they  may  serve  the  future  student  as 
the  means  of  verification  or  of  correction  in  the  greater  light  which  fur- 
ther investigation  may  give  him." 

It  was  stated  that  "  in  the  presentation  of  these  results,  and  their  dis- 
cussion, many  additions  to  the  knowledge  of  the  world  upon  this  impor- 
tant subject  of  purification  of  sewage  by  filtration  are  given." 

Both  of  these  reports  dealt  with  new  phases  of  sanitary  science  never 
until  this  time  taken  up  in  such  a  thorough,  scientific  and  comprehensive 
way  as  they  were  then  being  investigated  by  the  Board. 

The  experiment  station,  started  in  1887,  is  still  in  operation,  and  the 
work  there  up  to  the  present  time  has  covered  a  period  of  twenty-five 
years.  In  the  chemical  and  bacteriological  laboratories  of  the  station 
more  than  50,000  chemical  and  150,000  bacterial  analyses  have  been 
made.  New  and  more  accurate  chemical,  biological  and  physical  methods 
have  been  developed  for  the  study  of  water,  sewage,  sands,  soils,  etc. 
Beginning  with  studies  upon  intermittent  sand  filtration  of  sewage  and 
water,  together  with  laboratory  investigations  upon  nitrification,  the 
causes  of  the  reduction  of  bacteria  by  filtration,  etc.,  the  work  of  the 
station  has  grown  constantly  and  has  included  experimental  investiga- 
tions tending  towards  the  development  of  scientific  methods  of  sewage 
purification,  of  the  purification  of  manufacturing  wastes  of  many  kinds 
and  many  other  special  investigations  in  sanitary  science. 

The  experiment  station  report  for  1891  took  up  the  subjects  of  per- 
manency of  filters,  the  mechanical  composition  of  materials  used  in  fil- 
ters, together  with  the  conclusions  drawn  from  a  study  of  the  materials 
and  the  results  of  filtration,  as  showing  the  capacity  of  each  material  to 


30 

purify  sewage;  the  best  method  of  applying  sewage  to  different  grades 
of  sand,  etc.,  together  with  further  experiments  on  the  bacterial  efficiency 
of  the  filters  at  that  time  in  operation.  Early  in  tMs  year  a  gravel  filter 
was  operated  at  a  rate  of  220,000  gallons  per  acre  daily,  the  sewage  being- 
applied  in  60  or  70  doses  per  day.  Good  nitrification  results  were 
obtained  without  artificial  aeration  of  the  filter;  in  fact,  this  was  a  true 
trickling  filter  as  now  known. 

In  1892  and  1893  special  studies  were  made  of  the  care  of  sewage 
filters;  stratification  and  the  effect  of  horizontal  layers;  filtration  of 
sewage  containing  dyestuffs;  the  rate  of  filtration  through  various  mate 
rials;  the  causes  of  clogging  of  sewage  filters;  and  the  removal  of  thr 
clogging  matter  from  the  sand.  In  these  years,  also,  studies  of  rapid 
filtration  aided  by  artificial  aeration  of  the  filters  were  begun.  The 
report  for  1892  contained,  in  addition,  a  very  important  article  upon 
the  physical  properties  of  sands  and  gravels  with  special  reference  to 
their  use  in  filtration. 

In  1894  a  general  review  of  the  work  upon  sewage  purification  at  the 
station  up  to  and  including  that  year  was  given.  Special  investigations 
were  made  at  that  time  upon  the  composition  of  sewage  and  the  changes 
which  occurred  in  sewage  as  it  ages.  It  was  shown,  for  instance,  that 
storage  of  fresh  Lawrence  sewage  for  twenty-four  hours  doubled  the  free 
ammonia  and  decreased  the  organic  nitrogen  present  one-half.  Other 
changes,  such  as  an  increase  in  the  number  of  bacteria  present,  also  took 
place.  This  work  antedated  the  operation  of  septic  tanks.  At  this  time 
a  series  of  sewage  samples  were  collected  at  different  periods  of  the  day 
from  various  sewage-disposal  areas  and  institutions  in  the  State,  and 
were  examined  to  show  the  varying  strengths  of  the  sewage  at  different 
hours  and  the  amount  of  organic  matter  of  different  kinds  in  the  sewage 
per  person  contributing  to  the  flow. 

In  1895  investigations  were  continued  as  to  the  best  methods  of  treat 
ing  sewage  filters  to  insure  permanency;  on  the  best  preliminary  treat- 
ment of  sewage  to  remove  sludge  before  filtration  and  the  different 
methods  of  aerating  sewage  filters.  In  this  year,  also,  were  made  the 
first  experiments  upon  the  purification  by  filtration  of  industrial  sewage 
as  discharged  from  tanneries,  paper  mills,  wool-scouring  works,  etc.  The 
stable  character  of  the  effluents  from  trickling  filters  operated  at  high 
rates,  and  aerated  a  portion  of  the  time  by  means  of  a  current  of  air,  was 
first  shown  at  this  period.  It  was  found  that  "  the  organic  matter  in  the 
liquids,  after  rapid  filtration  combined  with  aeration,  is  of  a  different 
character  from  the  organic  matter  in  the  sewage  resulting  from  other 
sludge-removing  processes;  that  is  to  say,  even  when  the  organic  mat- 
ter, as  shown  by  the  albuminoid  ammonia,  is  present  in  quantities  as 


31 


great  as  in  the  other  partially  purified  sewages,  it  has  passed  through 
such  chemical  and  biological  changes  that  it  develops  offensive  odors 
very  slowly  on  standing."'  These  observations  were  made  prior  to  the 
English  studies  upon  the  stability  of  the  effluents  of  such  filters.  In 
this  year,  furthermore,  certain  filters  of  coarse  materials,  gravel-stones, 
pieces  of  coke,  etc.,  were  operated  at  rates  of  1,000,000  gallons  per  acre 
daily,  and  were  aerated  generally  only  from  one  to  two  and  one-half 
hours  daily.  The  effluents  of  these  filters  contained  high  nitrates,  were 
generally  stable,  and,  in  fact,  were  practically  similar  to  those  afterwards 
obtained  from  filters  of  like  materials  operated  at  high  rates  without 
even  the  slight  aeration  given  to  these  filters. 

In  1896  and  1897  much  time  was  devoted  to  the  study  of  the  purifica- 
tion of  industrial  sewage,  and  practicable  methods  for  the  purification 
of  some  of  these  wastes  are  definitely  described  in  the  reports  for  these 
years.  From  the  first,  studies  looking  to  the  removal  of  the  matters  in 
suspension  in  sewage  bj  sedimentation,  chemical  precipitation  and  coke 
straining  were  made.  In  1897  more  elaborate  experiments  were  begun 
on  the  purification  of  sewage  by  so-called  contact  filters,  although  one 
such  filter  had  been  studied  at  the  station  in  1894.  During  this  year 
(1897)  a  trickling  filter  of  clinker  was  operated  also.  To  this  the  sew- 
age was  passed  by  means  of  overhead  pipes  and  was  aerated  and  dis- 
tributed by  the  dash-plate  method.  This  trickling  filter,  and  all  others 
started  after  this  date,  received  no  artificial  aeration. 

In  1898  studies  were  continued  on  the  disposal  of  sewage,  both  fresh 
and  stale,  when  treated  in  septic  tanks;  on  the  purification  of  industrial 
sewages;  on  the  purification  of  sewage  both  by  sand  and  contact  filters. 
Early  in  1899  there  was  put  into  operation  a  trickling  filter  10y2  feet 
in  depth,  constructed  of  broken  stone  and  operated  at  a  rate  of  2,000,000 
gallons  per  acre  daily.  In  1899,  also,  studies  of  septic  tanks  and  of  the 
purification  of  septic  sewage  were  continued,  and  the  first  tank  for  the 
treatment  of  sludge  alone,  after  preliminary  sedimentation  of  the  sewage 
in  ordinary  settling  tanks,  was  put  into  operation  and  continued  for  sev- 
eral years.  This  variety  of  septic  tank  and  method  of  sludge  disposal 
has  since  become  well  known.  The  first  hydrolytic  tank  was  started 
also  at  the  station  in  1898.  "As  it  had  become  evident  that  the  greatest 
work  in  septic  tanks  occurred  where  the  bacteria  were  most  numerous, 
—  as  on  the  sides,  bottom  and  top  of  the  tank,  — ■  it  was  considered  that 
a  tank  filled  with  coarse,  broken  stone  would  afford  a  very  extensive 
foothold  and  breeding  place  for  the  classes  of  bacteria  necessary  for 
sludge  disposal,"  and  the  tank  was  so  arranged  that  the  sewage  passed 
upward  through  this  stone.  As  the  result  of  other  researches  it  was 
shown  that  prolongation   of  anaerobic  action  might  impede  subsequent 


32 

purification  b}'  filtration.  There  were  made  also  this  year  special  studies 
relating  to  the  purification  of  the  wastes  from  creameries,  and  to  the 
action  of  iron  and  iron  oxides  on  the  purification  of*"sewage  by  filtration. 

In  1900  analyses  and  measurements  of  the  gas  produced  by  septic 
tanks  were  made  and  investigations  concerning  the  efficiency  of  septic 
treatment  of  different  classes  of  sewage;  also  experiments  upon  the  steri- 
lization of  septic  sewage,  to  show  whether  or  not  the  air  that  it  was- 
necessary  to  introduce  into  some  classes  of  sewage,  before  efficient  puri- 
fication by  filtration  could  be  assured,  was  required  because  of  the  rapid 
use  of  the  oxygen  by  bacteria  or  because  of  its  absorption  by  organic  I 
matter  and  gases.  During  this  year  the  method  was  first  elaborated  at 
the  station  to  show  the  oxygen  absorption  powers  of  sewage,  this  method 
being  fundamentally  simply  the  mixture  of  certain  volumes  of  sewage 
with  water  saturated  with  dissolved  oxygen  and  determining  the  oxygen 
consumed  or  absorbed  by  the  mixture  during  certain  definite  periods. 
The  operation  of  the  hydrolytic  tank,  together  with  various  trickling  fil- 
ters, and  the  study  of  purification  of  manufacturing  wastes  were  con- 
tinued. 

In  1901  a  thorough  investigation  was  made  of  the  stability  of  the  efflu- 
ents and  of  the  organic  matter  left  in  the  effluents  of  contact  and  trick- 
ling filters,  together  with  observations  on  the  improvement  of  such 
effluents  when  mixed  with  river  water.  The  rate  and  degree  of  clogging 
of  materials  were  studied  also.  In  this  year  contact  filters  of  roofing- 
slate  and  brick,  with  regular  spaces  between  each  pair  of  slates  or  bricks, 
were  first  put  into  operation.  Two  of  these  filters  are  described  in  the 
report  for  1901,  the  slate  filters  being  similar  to  those  operated  in  more 
recent  years  in  England  by  Dibdin. 

In  1902  studies  of  contact  and  trickling  filters,  especially  those  of  the 
latter,  were  continued,  together  with  special  investigations  concerning 
nitrification  and  the  removal  of  organic  matter  from  the  upper  layers 
of  sand  filters. 

In  1903  special  efforts  were  made  to  learn  the  cause  of  the  poorer 
Avinter  nitrification  in  the  older  intermittent  sand  filters,  in  order  to  im- 
prove the  work  of  these  filters.  Studies  of  septic  tanks  and  of  the  op- 
eration of  contact  filters  constructed  of  different  materials  and  depths, 
with  special  regard  to  permanency  of  operation,  were  continued,  together 
with  allied  studies  upon  the  stability  of  their  effluents.  Studies  were 
made  also  of  the  purification  of  sewage  by  trickling  filters  of  different 
materials  and  different  depths,  and  investigations  in  regard  to  the  sta- 
bility of  the  effluents  of  these  filters  and  experiments  upon  sedimentation, 
secondary  filtration,  etc.,  of  these  effluents  were  undertaken.  Numerous 
experiments  were  made  on  the  purification  of  dye  liquors  and  the  waste 


33 

from  gas  works,  together  with  studies  on  methods  of  analysis  with  special 
regard  to  the  comparative  value  of  albuminoid  ammonia  and  Kjeldahl 
determinations  of  nitrogen;  of  incubation  of  effluents;  and  of  the  nitri- 
fication and  denitrification  caused  by  sand,  effluents  and  species  of  bac- 
teria from  filters  in  which  either  nitrification  or  reducing  actions  were 
occurring. 

The  year  1904:  was  devoted  largely  to  the  improvement  of  the  sand 
filters  that  had  been  in  operation  for  sixteen  years,  and  to  studies  of 
methods  for  the  disposal  of  nitrogenous  and  other  organic  matters  by 
these  filters;  special  studies  of  nitrification;  studies  of  the  respective 
amounts  of  nitrogen  and  carbon  oxidized,  stored  or  liberated  from  ex- 
perimental and  municipal  sand  filters:  studies  of  the  determination  of 
acidity  or  alkalinity  as  an  index  of  the  degree  of  purification  of  filter 
effluents;  studies  of  the  bacteriology  and  biochemistry  of  sewage  puri- 
fication. A  new  method  for  the  determination  of  turbidity  of  the  efflu- 
ents of  filters  and  of  water  was  developed  and  first  used  during  this  year. 
Studies  were  made  also  of  the  time  of  passage  of  sewage  through  trick- 
ling filters  constructed  of  different  materials  and  of  different  depths,  and 
of  the  rapidity  of  oxidation  and  purification  of  these  filters. 

In  1905  a  continuation  was  made  of  the  studies  of  the  organic  matters, 
nitrogen,  fats,  carbon,  etc.,  in  sludge  and  in  sewage,  and  of  the  same 
substances  stored  in  filters;  studies  of  the  relative  amounts  of  nitrogen, 
carbon  and  fatty  matters  in  sewage,  sludge  and  the  effluents  of  trickling 
and  contact  filters  and  appropriate  methods  for  their  analysis.  More- 
over, special  studies  were  taken  up  again  as  to  the  refiltration  of  trick- 
ling filter  effluents  through  sand  filters. 

In  1906  a  complete  resume  was  given  of  the  comparative  value  of  sand, 
contact  and  trickling  filters  for  the  disposal  of  organic  matter,  and  the 
comparative  rates  at  which  such  filters  can  be  operated;  of  the  rate  of 
filtration  and  amount  of  suspended  matter  in  sewage  applied  to  sand 
filters  as  related  to  volume  of  sand  removed;  of  the  coagulation  and 
mechanical  filtration  of  the  effluents  of  trickling  filters,  together  with 
more  complete  studies  of  methods  for  the  application  of  sewage  to  trick- 
ling filters;  of  the  comparative  rates  of  filtration  maintained  by  sand 
filters;  of  continued  studies  on  the  purification  of  industrial  wastes. 

In  1907  the  most  important  special  work  was  a  continued  study  of 
methods  for  the  distribution  of  sewage  upon  trickling  filters  and  observa- 
tions on  the  refiltration  of  trickling  filter  effluents  through  sand,  together 
with  studies  of  coagulation  and  mechanical  filtration. 

In  the  report  for  1908  a  complete  review  was  given  of  all  the  investi- 
gations made  at  the  station  up  to  that  time  upon  the  purification  of 
domestic  sewage,  and  the  report  for  1909  contained  a  review  of  all  the 


34 

work  done  by  the  Board  upon  the  purification  of  factory  wastes.  During 
1910  and  1911  special  studies  were  made  upon  the  influence  of  carbon 
upon  nitrification,  the  disinfection  of  sewage  and  the  effluents  of  sewage 
filters  and  upon  the  determination  of  the  character  and  strength  of  sew- 
age by  the  oxygen  absorption  powers. 


During  all  the  years  these  investigations  in  regard  to  the  purification 
of  sewage,  manufacturing  wastes,  etc.,  have  been  carried  on,  experiments 
have  also  been  made  in  regard  to  all  phases  of  the  purification  of  water, 
and  in  this  period  about  100  filters  have  been  operated  in  connection  with 
such  studies.  The  filters  at  first  were  composed  of  fine  sand,  loam,  etc., 
but  as  the  studies  progressed,  sands  of  coarser  material  were  used  and 
thorough  studies  made  in  regard  to  the  chemical  and  bacterial  purifica- 
tion of  polluted  waters  when  filtered  through  these  sands  at  various  rates. 

One  of  the  early  results  of  the  Lawrence  studies  was  the  construction 
of  the  municipal  filter  of  the  city  of  Lawrence,  the  first  large  sand  filter 
plant  in  this  country.  The  work  of  this  filter  has  been  followed,  and  it 
was  found  during  the  first  years  of  its  operation  that  not  only  did  it 
materially  reduce  the  cases  and  deaths  from  typhoid  fever  in  the  city 
<of  Lawrence,  but  that  the  general  death  rate  from  all  causes  was  also 
materially  reduced.  This  fact  has  been  widely  quoted  and  studied  by 
others  in  connection  with  other  filtration  systems. 

Studies  in  regard  to  the  purification  of  water  containing  iron  were 
carried  on  in  1896,  and  an  article  in  regard  to  this  subject  was  published 
in  the  report  of  the  Board  for  that  year. 

The  report  for  1897  contained  a  resume  of  the  work  upon  the  purifica- 
tion of  water  carried  on  during  previous  years  in  which  all  the  factors 
affecting  the  efficiency  of  water  filters,  such  as  fluctuations  in  rate,  scrap- 
ing of  the  surface,  depth  of  sand,  etc.,  were  summarized. 

Previous  to  1897  numerous  tests  had  been  made  on  the  hygienic  effi- 
ciency of  various  water  filters  by  applying  to  them  from  time  to  time  cul- 
tures of  B.  prodigiosus,  but  beginning  in  1896  tests  for  B.  coli,  which 
had  been  investigated  previously,  were  extended  and  the  waters  applied 
to,  and  the  effluents  from,  all  the  filters  of  the  station  were  examined  in 
this  way.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the  use  of  the  B.  coli  test  for  the 
examination  of  water  supplies,  especially  for  filtered  waters.  Such  tests 
are  now  universal  in  all  laboratories  where  similar  work  is  carried  on. 

The  report  for  1898  contained  an  article  describing  the  methods  for 
determining  B.  coli.  In  1899  studies  of  double  filtration  of  very  pol- 
luted water  were  continued,  and  also  elaborate  studies  made  in  regard 
to  the  removal  of  color,  tastes  and  odors  from  water.     This  report  con- 


35 


tained  also  a  review  of  the  work  upon  filters  operating  intermittently  and 
continuously,  with  data  as  to  the  comparative  efficiency  of  such  filters 
when  filtering  water  such  as  used  in  the  experiments  described. 

In  1900  extensive  examinations  of  the  spring  waters  in  the  State  were 
carried  on,  and  the  first  work  upon  the  examination  of  shellfish  from 
polluted  and  non-polluted  sources  was  done.  In  this  report  also  was  an 
article  in  regard  to  the  bacterial  purification  of  water  by  freezing,  and 
an  article  in  regard  to  the  efficiency  of  water  filters  in  removing  different 
kinds  of  bacteria,  the  significance  of  B.  coli  in  filtered  waters,  and  the 
relative  removal  of  B.  coli  and  typhoid  bacilli  by  water  filters. 

In  the  report  for  1901  an  article  was  given  describing  the  results  of 
studies  made  in  regard  to  the  removal  by  filtration  of  microscopical  or- 
ganisms, tastes  and  odors  from  a  surface  water  supply  in  the  State, 
highly  colored  and  rendered  offensive  in  odor  by  extreme  growths  of  such 
organisms. 

The  reports  for  all  the  years  subsequent  to  this  up  to  the  present  time 
have  contained  much  data  in  regard  to  the  purification  of  waters  of  dif- 
ferent classes;  the  effect  of  turbidity  upon  the  operating  results  of  water 
filters;  the  relative  occurrence  of  B.  coli  in  waters  of  different  kinds,  in 
ice,  shellfish,  etc. ;  and  the  significance  of  the  various  types  of  bacteria 
used,  or  that  can  be  used,  to  show  pollution ;  and  in  regard  to  the  relative 
length  of  life  of  B.  coli  and  the  typhoid  bacillus  under  a  wide  variety 
of  conditions. 

In  1903  experiments  were  begun  which  have  been  continued  up  to  the 
present  time  in  regard  to  the  purification  of  polluted  waters  by  so-called 
mechanical  filters,  that  is,  by  filtration  through  a  filter  of  coarse  sand 
operated  at  a  high  rate  with  the  aid  of  sulphate  of  alumina  or  some  other 
like  chemical  as  a  coagulant,  and  much  data  have  been  given  in  the 
reports  to  show  the  chemical  and  bacterial  efficiencies  of  such  filters  when 
operated  at  rates  varying  from  25,000,000  to  125,000,000  gallons  per 
icre  daily,  and  with  varying  amounts  of  sulphate  of  alumina  or  similar 
coagulants. 

In  the  year  1904  extensive  studies  were  made  and  reported  in  regard 
:o  the  use  of  copper  sulphate  as  a  germicide  in  water  purification,  and 
if  the  influence  of  copper  sulphate  in  water  upon  the  subsequent,  puri- 
fication of  such  water  by  sand  filtration.  Other  studies  in  regard  to  the 
purification  of  water  by  disinfection  with  such  chemicals  as  copper  sul- 
fate, bleaching  powder,  etc.,  have  been  given  in  different  reports.  In 
!act,  the  variety  of  work  in  regard  to  the  purification  of  water  has  been 
so  great,  and  the  number  of  investigations  carried  on  at  the  station  in 
•egard  to  the  purification  of  water  has  been  so  large,  that  only  a  partial 
summary  of  the  work  can  be  given  here. 


36 

At  the  State  House  laboratories  102,000  chemical  and  55,000  micro- 
scopical analyses  have  been  made  up  to  the  present  time,  all  this  work 
being  necessary  on  account  of  not  only  the  first  a&t  of  the  Legislature, 
passed  in  1886  in  regard  to  the  protection  of  the  purity  of  inland  waters. 
but  on  account  of  the  many  other  acts  and  resolves  of  the  Legislature 
placing  special  investigations  in  regard  to  sanitary  affairs  of  the  State  in 
the  hands  of  the  State  Board  of  Health. 


37 


4.    DISEASES  DANGEROUS  TO  THE  PUBLIC  HEALTH. 

The  Legislature  of  190?  authorized  the  State  Board  of  Health  to  de- 
clare certain  diseases  as  dangerous  to  public  health,  and  requiring  that 
householders  and  physicians  give  immediate  notice  to  the  local  board  of 
health  of  all  such  cases,  which  must  be  reported  by  the  local  board  of 
health  to  the  State  Board  of  Health  Avithin  twenty-four  hours. 

The  list  of  diseases  at  present  reportable  under  the  law  are :  — 

Actinomycosis.  Smallpox. 

Anterior  poliomyelitis.  Tetanus. 

Asiatic  cholera.  Trachoma. 

Cerebro-spinal  meningitis.  Trichinosis. 

Diphtheria.  Tuberculosis. 

Glanders.  Typhoid  fever. 

Leprosy.  Typhus  fever. 

Malignant  pustule.  Varicella. 

Measles.  Whooping  cough. 

Ophthalmia  neonatorum.  Yellow  fever. 
Scarlet  fever. 

The  activities  of  the  Board  as  far  as  communicable  diseases  are  con- 
cerned are  along  three  distinct  lines :  — 

1.  Making  bacteriological  examinations  for  diagnosis  and  release  of 
patients. 

2.  Investigating  sources  of  infection. 

3.  Free  distribution  of  sera,  vaccines  and  other  prophylactic  agents. 

(1)  Bacteriological  Examinations.  —  In  1895  a  laboratory  for  the 
examination  of  suspected  material  was  established  by  the  State  Board 
of  Health  to  aid  in  the  diagnosis  of  diseases  dangerous  to  public  health. 
This  laboratory  is  free  to  all  the  physicians  in  the  State.  Examinations 
are  made  of  cultures  for  diphtheria  organisms,  of  sputa  and  other  mate- 
rial for  tubercle  bacilli,  of  blood  for  malarial  organisms,  of  blood  for  the 
serum  reaction  of  typhoid,  of  blood,  urine  and  stools  for  typhoid  organ- 
isms. Outfits  for  obtaining  the  suspected  material  are  furnished  by 
the  Board. 

(2)  Investigating  Sources  of  Infection.  —  The  State  Board  of  Health 
through  its  State  Inspectors  of  Health  watches  the  incidence  of  commu- 
nicable diseases  in  each  city  or  town,  makes  thorough  investigation  of 


38 

the  source  of  infection  of  any  outbreak,  and  circulates  information  as  to 
the  best  measures  of  preventing  the  spread  of  communicable  diseases. 
Since  1907  special  annual  appropriations  are  made  by  the  Legislature 
for  the  investigation  of  poliomyelitis  in  the  Stat%  and  extensive  epi- 
demiological studies  of  the  disease  are  published  annually. 

(3)  Free  Distribution,  of  Sera,  Vaccines  and  Other  Prophylactic 
Agents.  —  The  State  Board  of  Health  distributes  free  of  cost  diphtheria 
antitoxin,  smallpox  vaccine,  and  a  prophylactic  solution  of  silver  nitrate 
for  ophthalmia  neonatorum.  Preparations  are  being  made  for  the  free 
distribution  of  antimeningitis  serum  and  antityphoid  vaccine. 


39 


5.    THE  ANTITOXIN  AND  VACCINE  LABORATORY. 

The  discovery  by  Behring  of  the  antitoxic  power  of  the  blood  in  ani- 
mals treated  with  diphtheria  toxin,  and  the  successful  attempts  of  Beh- 
ring, Eoux  and  others  to  produce  antitoxin  on  a  large  scale,  led  Dr. 
H.  P.  Walcott,  chairman  of  the  State  Board  of  Health,  in  1894,  to  con- 
sider the  advisability  of  establishing  a  laboratory  for  the  production  and 
free  distribution,  under  State  supervision,  of  this  preventive  and  cura- 
tive serum. 

There  might  have  been  at  that  time,  in  the  minds  of  some  of  those 
interested  in  the  public  welfare,  reasonable  doubts  of  the  desirability  of 
this  new  departure  but,  viewed  from  the  standpoint  of  to-day,  this  plan 
has  proved  to  be  eminently  wise  and  the  undertaking  fully  justified.  "We 
need  simpty  to  consider  the  price  of  antitoxin  to-day  to  be  convinced  of 
the  advantages  of  an  economically  managed  State  institution  in  supplying 
those  quite  unable  to  pay  for  the  serum. 

In  the  autumn  of  1894  the  preparation  of  antitoxic  serum  was  begun 
tentatively  by  Dr.  J.  L.  G-oodale,  in  a  laboratory  of  the  State  House. 
The  horses  were  kept  in  a  stable  on  the  grounds  of  the  Bussey  Institu- 
tion of  Harvard  University,  near  the  Forest  Hills  station.  Some  serum 
was  distributed  as  early  as  the  spring  of  1895.  At  that  time  Dr.  Theo- 
bald Smith  fitted  up  a  number  of  laboratory  rooms  in  the  Bussey  Insti- 
tution, and  took  charge  of  the  work  as  soon  as  the  laboratories  were 
ready,  in  the  early  summer. 

For  a  period  of  nine  years  the  preparation  of  diphtheria  antitoxin 
was  carried  on  in  the  Bussey  Institution  under  the  personal  direction  of 
Dr.  Smith.  This  close  supervision  was  made  possible  by  the  establish- 
ment of  the  chair  of  comparative  pathology  in  the  Harvard  Medical 
School,  through  the  munificence  of  Mr.  George  F.  Fabyan.  The  labora- 
tory connected  with  this  department  was  practically  coextensive  with 
that  of  the  serum  laboratory,  and  permitted  that  co-operation  which 
enabled  Dr.  Smith  not  only  to  direct  the  routine  work,  but  also  to  engage 
in  investigations  directed  towards  the  improvement  of  the  serum  and  the 
greater  accuracy  of  standardization. 

With  the  increasing  demand  for  serum,  culminating  during  the  epi- 
demic of  1900-01,  the  quarters  in  the  Bussey  Institution  became  more 
and  more  inadequate,  and  it  was  evident  that  the  time  had  come  for  the 
State  to  take  cognizance  of  this  eminently  philanthropic  work  by  pro- 
viding more  appropriate  quarters,  and  placing  the  preparation  of  diph- 
theria antitoxin  on  a  more  stable  basis. 


40 

At  the  same  time  another  problem  was  brought  forward,  which  in-' 
volved  the  preparation  and  free  distribution  of  vaccine  lymph  by  the 
State  Board  of  Health.  The  importance  of  some  cfirect  supervision  and 
control  of  this  prophylactic  substance  by  the  State  had  been  felt  for  a 
long  time,  but  any  supervision  of  a  product  made  largely  outside  of  the] 
State  and  by  a  number  of  different  parties  was  impossible.  The  only 
solution  was  the  assumption  by  the  State  itself  of  the  preparation  of  the; 
lymph,  as  is  the  practice  in  nearly  all  European  countries. 

During  the  session  of  1903  the  Legislature  finally  passed  a  bill  which 
authorized  the  State  Board  of  Health  to  produce  and  distribute  anti- 
toxin and  vaccine  lymph. 

To  obtain  a  suitable  site  for  a  State  laboratory,  free  from  objection- 
able surroundings,  with  sufficient  land  about  it  to  secure  light  and  air, 
and  not  subject  to  the  complaints  or  the  objections  of  fastidious  neigh- 
bors or  sensitive  real  estate  owners,  would  have  been  impossible  with- 
out acquiring  a  large  and  expensive  tract. 

To  overcome  this  difficulty,  the  Corporation  of  Harvard  University 
came  to  the  aid  of  the  State,  and  agreed  to  use  a  portion  of  the  land 
of  the  Bussey  Institution  adjoining  the  Arnold  Arboretum,  and  build 
a  laboratory  in  which  the  preparation  of  diphtheria  antitoxin  and  animal 
vaccine  could  be  carried  on  together.  After  the  passage  of  the  bill  au- 
thorizing the  State  Board  of  Health  to  prepare  diphtheria  antitoxin  and 
vaccine,  Dr.  Smith  visited  a  number  of  vaccine  institutes  in  England, 
Germany,  France  and  Denmark  during  the  summer  of  1903.  In  the 
fall  of  the  same  year  the  site  for  the  new  building  was  selected,  the  plans 
made  and  the  building  begun.  On  account  of  the  very  severe  winter 
of  1903  and  1904,  building  operations  were  almost  wholly  suspeuded 
until  late  in  March.  However,  the  work  progressed  uninterruptedly  in 
the  spring,  and  the  building  was  ready  for  occupation  in  July.  The  pro- 
duction of  antitoxin  continued  without  interruption  in  the  old  laboratory 
during  the  installation  of  apparatus  in  the  new.  The  production  of  vac- 
cine was  begun  in  Jul}',  and  late  in  September  the  first  lot  was  issued. 

The  building  is  situated  on  South  Street,  about  one-quarter  of  a  mile 
beyond  the  Forest  Hills  station  of  the  ~New  York,  Xew  Haven  &  Hart- 
ford Bailroad.  It  faces  slightly  east  of  south,  and  receives  an  abundance 
of  sunshine,  as  no  shadows  from  other  structures  fall  upon  it.  The 
windows  have  been  constructed  amply  large  to  admit  plenty  of  light. 
The  situation  is  ideal,  as  the  building  stands  in  a  park  reservation  of  over 
200  acres  of  land.' 

The  building  is  nearly  square,  and  has  an  extension  or  wing  consisting 
of  basement  and  first  floor  only.  This  wing  was  designed  to  house  the 
calves  after  vaccination.     The  floors  are  of  cement  in  the  basement,  of 


41 

cement  covered  with  a  layer  of  asphalt  in  the  remainder  of  the  building. 
The  walls  and  ceiling  are  covered  with  a  very  hard  plaster,  and  painted 
with  enamel  paint  to  give  a  smooth  surface,  easily  washed  and  disin- 
fected. The  doors  are  covered  with  tin  and  heavily  painted,  and  fit  into 
iron  frames.  The  structure  is  thus  nearly  fireproof.  It  is  lighted  by 
electricity. 

In  planning  the  arrangement  and  division  of  the  interior  for  the  pro- 
duction of  diphtheria  antitoxin  and  animal  vaccine,  the  experience  in 
the  preparation  of  antitoxin,  covering  a  period  of  nine  years,  and  an 
extensive  investigation  of  existing  vaccine  plants  of  this  country  and 
Europe  were  used  as  a  guide. 

The  basement  consists  of  a  room  used  as  a  receiving  room,  where  ap- 
paratus, supplies,  etc.,  are  unpacked;  a  room  for  guinea  pigs,  rabbits, 
mice,  etc.,  used  in  the  testing  of  antitoxin  and  vaccine;  a  vault  with 
double  brick  walls,  in  which  the  serum  and  vaccine  are  stored;  a  store- 
room which  contains  the  hot-water  plant  for  the  heating  of  the  building ; 
and  a  general  storeroom. 

The  first  floor  consists  of  the  director's  room,  which  is  also  used  for 
the  storage  of  valuable  apparatus ;  a  document  room,  which  provides  desk 
room  for  assistants;  a  room  for  the  cleaning  and  sterilizing  of  all  the 
glassware  used  in  the  building,  which  also  contains  a  large  autoclave  in 
which  culture  media,  milk,  hay,  etc.,  are  sterilized;  one  room  is  set  aside 
for  the  testing  of  serum  and  vaccines,  and  for  other  operations  on  small 
animals.  The  remainder  of  this  floor,  including  the  wing,  is  set  apart 
for  the  production  of  vaccine.  These  animals  are  driven  up  an  incline 
in  the  rear  of  the  wing  to  a  room  where  they  are  thoroughly  washed  and 
then  placed  in  an  adjoining  room  which  is  fitted  up  as  an  incubation 
stable;  i.e.,,  the  place  where  the  animals  are  kept  during  the  development 
of  the  vaccinal  eruption.  This  stable  has  windows  facing  northeast  and 
southwest,  and  receives  abundant  sunshine.  The  floor  is  concrete,  cov- 
ered with  asphalt.  The  walls  of  this  stable  are  finished  like  those  of  the 
other  parts  of  the  building,  and  they  can  be  easily  washed  and  disinfected. 

This  floor  also  has  an  operating  room.  Here  the  calves  are  fastened 
to  the  operating  table,  shaved  and  vaccinated  and  returned  to  the  stable. 
After  a  certain  number  of  days  (four  to  six)  the  calves  are  returned  to 
the  table  and  the  vaccinal  eruption  removed. 

Adjoining  the  operating  room  is  a  room  fitted  up  like  the  stable,  to 
be  used  for  calves  in  case  of  emergency.  It  has  a  special  entrance.  It 
is  ordinarily  used  for  sterilizing  water  and  the  instruments  and  gowns 
used  during  the  operations  on  calves. 

The  second  floor  consists  of  a  room  set  aside  for  the  filtering  and 
bottling  of  diphtheria  antitoxin ;  a  room  for  the  grinding  of  vaccine  and 


42 

for  filling  it  into  tubes ;  and  a  room  in  which  all  culture .  media  are-  pre- 
pared. One  large  single  room  is  set  aside  for  bacteriological  and  other 
work  incidental  to  the  preparation  of  diphtheria  toxin  and  the  bacterio- 
logical testing  of  vaccine.  For  this  purpose  a  little  room  has  been  set 
aside  as  a  place  free  from  drafts  and  dust.  Lastly  is  a  small  room  on 
this  floor  where  the  vaccine  is  packed  for  distribution. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  building  has  been  arranged  quite  exclusively 
for  the  routine  preparation  of  the  products  authorized  by  law.  Any  ex- 
tensive investigations  are  not  to  be  undertaken  here,  as  no  space  has  been 
set  aside  for  this  purpose.  For  minor  investigations,  looking  towards 
the  steady  improvement  of  the  products,  there  are  ample  facilities,  how- 
ever. In  deciding  for  this  plan,  Dr.  Smith  had  in  mind  the  safeguarding 
of  the  products.  By  banishing  bacteriological  work  not  immediately 
bearing  upon  the  problems  of  antitoxins  and  vaccines,  the  latter  are  not 
likely  to  become  infected. 

Since  the  establishment  of  the  laboratory,  there  has  been  a  marked 
increase  in  the  strength  of  antitoxic  serum.  That  which  was  regarded 
as  of  quite  satisfactory  concentration  in  1895  would  be  rejected  at  pres- 
ent. This  improvement  was  due  chiefly  to  advances  in  the  methods  of 
producing  concentrated  toxins,  coupled  with  the  discovery  of  races  of 
bacilli  which  produce  far  more  than  the  average  amount  of  toxin  in  cul- 
ture fluids.  It  was  furthermore  due  to  the  elimination  of  horses  which 
under  any  treatment  produce  but  little  antitoxin.  By  a  careful  selection 
of  horses  and  the  use  of  a  concentrated  toxin  for  immunization,  sera  of 
very  great  potency  have  been  obtained.  These  are,  however,  exceptional, 
since  only  a  very  small  percentage  of  horses  produce  sera  of  high  po- 
tency. 

Parallel  with  the  increase  in  the  strength  of  the  serum  produced,  there 
has  been  a  corresponding  improvement  in  the  method  of  testing  this 
strength.  With  these  improvements  there  has  steadily  risen  the  amount 
of  antitoxin  used  in  the  treatment  of  diphtheria.  While  a  dose  of  1,000 
units  was  recommended  as  sufficient  in  1895,  the  initial  dose  commonly 
used  at  the  present  time  is  3,000  units. 

For  the  production  of  diphtheria  antitoxin  the  number  of  horses  re- 
quired has  fluctuated  from  8  to  24,  according  to  the  season.  As  there 
are,  up  to  the  present,  no  characters  known  between  a  good  and  a  poor 
antitoxin  producer,  the  horses  obtained  by  purchase  are  all  subjected  for 
two  to  three  months  to  the  usual  process  of  immunization,  which  con- 
sists in  the  periodical  injection  under  the  skin  of  increasing  doses  of 
diphtheria  toxin.  If,  after  this  preliminary  treatment,  a  test  of  the 
serum  falls  below  a  certain  level,  the  horse  is  rejected,  and  a  new  one 


43 

put  in  his  place.     A  considerable  item  of  expense  has  been  the  great 
increase  in  the  cost  of  horses. 

The  total  distribution  of  antitoxin  since  1895  and  the  continual  in- 
creased demand  for  the  serum  can  be  seen  in  the  accompanying  table :  — 


In  1895-96  (year  ended  March  31), 
In  1896-97  (year  ended  March  31), 
In  1897-98   (year  ended  March  31), 
In  1898-99   (year  ended  March  31), 
In  1899-1900   (year  ended  March  31), 
In  1900-01   (year  ended  March  31), 
In  1901-02   (year  ended  March  31), 
In  1902-03   (year  ended  March  31), 
In  1903-04   (year  ended  March  31), 
During  six  months  ended  Sept.  30,  1904, 
In  1904-05   (year  ended  Sept.  30,  1905), 
During  fourteen  months  ended  Nov.  30,  1906, 
In  1906-07   (year  ended  Nov.  30,  1907), 
In  1907-OS   (year  ended  Nov.  30,  1908), 
In  1908-09   (year  ended  Nov.  30,  1909), 
In  1909-10   (year  ended  Nov.  30,  1910), 
In  ] 910-11   (year  ended  Nov.  30,  1911), 


Bottles. 

1,724 
3,219 
4,668 
12,491 
31.997 
53,389 
40,211 
33.475 
41,133 
22,255 
47,387 
70,424 
64,807 
94,645 
90,131 
92,623 
96,522 


Total, 801,101 


The  production  of  vaccine  lymph  on  a  large  scale  has  become  necessary 
in  the  struggle  of  a  dense  population  against  such  a  pervasive  virus  as 
that  of  smallpox.  Isolation  does  not  succeed  in  itself  alone  to  suppress 
an  outbreak.  The  need  for  individual  protection  conferred  by  vaccine 
lymph  had  been  fully  appreciated  by  the  medical  profession  during  the 
nineteenth  century.  Hence  the  law  in  this  State  that  children  cannot 
enter  the  public  schools  without  this  protection. 

The  success  of  the  public  sanitary  organization  in  promptly  isolating 
cases  of  infectious  disease  has  led  the  public  in  recent  years  to  regard 
the  value  of  vaccination  as  a  protection  against  smallpox  with  more 
indifference  than  our  forefathers,  who  did  not  have  boards  of  health  and 
other  sanitary  organizations  ready  at  a  moment's  notice  to  seize  the  first 
case  and  isolate  it  in  smallpox  hospitals.  Abetting  this  indifference  is 
a  widespread  fear  among  the  more  intelligent  of  the  laity  of  the  dangers 
of  vaccination.  This  fear  is  chiefly  an  heirloom  of  former  generations, 
when  human  vaccine  lymph  was  used  almost  exclusively,  and  when  cer- 
tain human  infections  were  occasionally  transmitted  in  the  lymph. 


u 

The  use  of  carefully  prepared  and  previously  tested  animal  vaccine 
to-day  should  not  give  rise  to  any  difficulties,  unless  the  operation  be 
carelessly  performed,  or  the  wound  not  properly  protected  from  subse- 
quent infection.  If  the .  lymph  is  prepared  without  proper  precautions 
it  may  give  rise  to  various  local  troubles,  due  to  the  presence  of  miscel- 
laneous bacteria,  in  spite  of  the  care  exercised  during  and  after  vacci- 
nation. 

It  being  the  attitude  of  the  State  that  individuals  living  within  its 
borders  should  possess  vaccinal  immunity,  and  that  this  is  best  accom- 
plished by  vaccinating  the  young,  the  duty  of  the  State  in  providing  a 
safe  and  efficient  vaccine  lymph  is  self-evident.  To  exercise  supervision 
over  a  number  of  vaccine  plants  in  and  out  of  the  State  being  impossible, 
the  only  alternative  is  the  assumption  by  the  State  itself  of  the  responsi- 
bility of  preparing  and  distributing  vaccine.  Furthermore,  it  is  the  only 
way  to  bring  the  physician  who  performs  the  vaccination  in  close  touch 
with  the  producing  laboratory.  It  eliminates  the  various  middlemen,  in 
whose  hands  the  vaccine  is  likely  to  deteriorate. 

Vaccine  differs  essentially  from  diphtheria  antitoxin;  in  fact,  there 
are  hardly  any  points  of  similarity,  beyond  the  one  that  both  are  inocu- 
lated into  human  beings.  This,  however,  is  the  focal  point  of  the  whole 
matter,  and  every  step  in  the  preparation  must  be  regarded  from  the 
standpoint  of  its  use  upon  human  beings,  and  more  particularly  chil- 
dren. It  is  the  use  of  various  checks  and  safeguards  which  controls  the 
entire  process  and  probably  doubles  or  triples  the  final  cost.  Vaccine 
differs  from  antitoxin  in  its  perishable  quality.  Although  certain  strains 
of  vaccine  kept  in  the  cold  may  still  be  very  active  after  seven  or  eight 
months  of  storage,  others  may  be  inactive  after  three  or  four  months. 
This  is  not  the  case  with  diphtheria  antitoxin,  which  remains  practically 
unchanged  for  six  months,  and  thereafter  loss  of  antitoxic  power  pro- 
ceeds very  slowly. 

Again,  antitoxin  is  prepared  at  the  outset  free  from  bacteria  or  other 
micro-organisms.  This  is  not  possible  in  the  preparation  of  vaccine 
lymph.  The  development  of  the  vaccinal  eruption  on  the  surface  of  the 
calf's  body,  the  presence  of  exudations,  the  slight  formation  of  crusts, 
favor  certain  ordinary  bacteria  of  the  skin,  and  the  fresh  lymph  always 
contains  bacteria.  These,  however,  coming  from  the  calf,  have  been 
shown  by  many  investigators  to  be  harmless  to  man.  They  are  probably 
far  less  harmful,  and  are  present  even  in  fresh  lymph  in  much  smaller 
numbers,  than  those  in  the  milk  we  drink  on  a  summer's  day.  ~No  one 
would  be  very  much  exercised  over  the  operation  of  slightly  scratching 
the  skin  and  placing  on  the  scratch  a  drop  of  milk;  and  yet  this  opera- 
tion would  be  far  more  serious,  from  a  bacteriological  standpoint,  than 


45 

the  introduction  of  vaccine  lymph,  so  far  as  the  bacterial  content  is  con- 
cerned. This  illustration  serves  to  point  out  our  indifference  to  daily 
occurrences,  and  our  apprehensions  towards  those  that  occur  but  once 
or  twice  in  our  lives. 

In  the  preparation  of  diphtheria  antitoxin  the  laboratory  equipment 
is  more  detailed  than  in  the  preparation  of  vaccine.  It  presupposes  much 
more  technical  training,  and  cannot  be  undertaken  except  by  well-trained 
medical  bacteriologists.  With  vaccine  the  conditions  are  somewhat  dif- 
ferent. Any  one  who  has  witnessed  the  production  of  vaccine  may  pre- 
pare it  in  an  old  cow  stable,  and  some  room  where  it  can  be  put  up  for 
distribution.  No  technical  knowledge  is  required,  beyond  ability  to  recog- 
nize the  character  of  the  eruption.  Yet  the  preparation  of  such  vaccine 
would  be  bare  of  all  safeguards  devised  by  modern  medical  science.  It 
is  the  fundamental  simplicity  of  the  process  which  has  induced  many 
in  the  past  to  try  their  hand  at  making  vaccine  lymph. 

To-day  its  preparation  demands,  among  other  things,  the  inspection 
by  immediate  autopsy  of  the  health  of  the  calves  used  for  vaccine;  the 
absolutely  clean,  aseptic  condition  of  the  incubation  stable,  and  the  steri- 
lization of  the  feed  of  the  animals  used;  general  surgical  asepsis  in  the 
operation  of  inoculating  the  animal  and  in  removing  the  vaccine;  the 
aseptic  handling  and  sealing  of  the  lymph ;  the  removal  of  the  bulk  of 
the  bacteria  in  lymph  either  by  storage  at  low  temperature  for  six  to 
eight  weeks,  by  carbolic  acid  or  chloroform;  and,  finally,  the  testing  of 
the  vaccine  on  small  animals  and  at  intervals  by  bacteriological  methods. 
These  are  all  precautionary  processes,  based  on  modern  medical  bac- 
teriology, which  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  essential  production  of 
vaccine.  They  simply  hedge  in  by  safeguards  the  process  itself.  The  use 
of  these  safeguards  makes  it  impossible  for  any  but  trained  bacteriol- 
ogists to  direct  the  process,  and  demands  laboratories  and  stables  of 
special  construction. 

It  is  of  considerable  interest  to  note  that  vaccine  dispensed  by  different 
institutes  is  not  derived  from  one  and  the  same  stock.  There  are  three 
sources  available :  — 

1.  The  virus  descended  from  spontaneous  cowpox,  and  continued 
through  an  indefinite  series  of  animals,  —  the  true  animal  vaccine. 

2.  Virus  obtained  from  animals  which  have  been  inoculated  with 
lymph  from  human  vaccine  pustules,  either  directly  or  indirectly, 
through  a  series  of  calves.     This  is  known  as  retro-vaccine. 

3.  Vaccine  obtained  by  passing  smallpox  virus  through  the  cow,  — 
the  so-called  variola-vaccine.  During  repeated  passages  through  the 
cow  the  smallpox  virus  is  profoundly  altered,  and  converted  into  the 
relativelv  harmless  vaccine  virus. 


46 


It  would  probably  be  impossible  for  man)-  vaccine  plants  to  trace  the 
genealogy  of  their  current  stock  back  to  its  beginning.  In  Germany 
the  use  of  lymph  from  the  arms  of  children  (retro-vaccine)  has  been  a 
favorite  mode  of  rejuvenating  impaired  animal  virus. 

An  inspection  of  a  considerable  number  of  vaccine  laboratories  in 
Europe  and  some  in  our  own  country  revealed  the  fact  that  each  insti- 
tution followed  to  a  certain  extent  methods  of  its  own.  The  general 
underlying  principles  were  the  same,  for  in  all  cases  the  end  product 
was  giycerinated  pulp,  i.e.,  the  vaccinal  eruption  removed  with  a  curette 
and  ground  up  into  a  fine  suspension  with  diluted  glycerine.  The  pro- 
cedures for  obtaining  this  end  product  differ  in  almost  every  possible 
detail.  Animals  of  all  ages  were  used,  each  institution  confining  itself 
to  the  use  of  those  of  a  certain  age.  The  method  of  feeding  differed  from 
place  to  place.  The  period  elapsing  between  inoculation  and  the  removal 
of  the  virus  also  varies  considerably  in  different  institutions.  Some 
remove  the  vaccine  at  the  end  of  three,  others  at  the  end  of  six,  days; 
others  choose  a  period  of  four  or  five  days. 

The  lymph,  put  up  for  final  distribution  in  capillary  tubes,  that  is, 
tubes  with  both  ends  sealed  in  the  flame,  are  sent  out  with  small  bulbs, 
to  be  used  in  ejecting  the  lymph  upon  the  scarified  area.  Printed  direc- 
tions, issued  with  each  lot  of  vaccine,  describe  the  method  for  using  the 
bulb. 

The  capillary  tubes  are  sent  out  in  lots  of  3,  5,  10  or  more,  put  up 
in  glass,  wooden  and  paper  containers,  in  the  order  named.  The  latter 
may  be  sealed,  and  the  whole  sent  as  first-class  mail  matter.  Physicians 
requiring  vaccine  lymph  may,  by  addressing  the  State  Board  of  Health, 
State  House,  Boston,  obtain  by  return  mail  the  number  of  tubes  desired. 

The  total  number  of  tube  of  vaccine  virus  issued  b}^  the  Board  during 
the  seven  years  and  two  months  ending  Nov.  30,  1911,  was  as  follows:  — 


In  1904-05  (year  ended  Sept.  30,  1905),  . 
During  fourteen  months  ended  Nov.  30,  1906, 

In  1906-07  (year  ended  Nov.  30,  1907), 

In  1907-08  (year  ended  Nov.  30,  1908), 

In  1908-09  (year  ended  Nov.  30,  1909), 

In  1909-10  (year  ended  Nov.  30.  1910), 

In  1910-11  (year  ended  Nov.  30,  1911), 


Tubes. 

23,970 
31,805 
45,265 
48,768 
47,961 
76,690 
65,251 


Total, 339,710 


47 


6.    INSPECTION  OF  FOOD  AND  DRUGS. 

The  department  of  food  inspection  deals  with  the  enforcement  of  the 
laws  pertaining  to  the  sale  of  adulterated  milk,  food  and  drugs,  of 
arsenical  wall  papers  and  fabrics,  and  of  cocaine  and  morphine  and 
their  derivatives.  It  also  makes  examination  of  certain  poisons,  liquors 
and  turpentine  for  police  authorities,  and  of  paints,  oils  and  turpentine 
for  the  Massachusetts  district  police. 

The  food  and  drug  law  of  Massachusetts  was  passed  in  1882,  and  its 
enforcement  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  State  Board  of  Health. 
This  law  is  the  second  in  antiquity  in  the  county,  that  of  New  York 
State  being  enacted  one  year  earlier. 

Previous  to  the  passage  of  the  law  the  Board  had  made  numerous 
investigations  concerning  the  purity  of  milk,  food  and  drugs,  and  these 
studies  were  no  doubt  instrumental  in  the  passage  of  the  law. 

In  the  third  annual  report,  1872,  an  article  appeared  by  Dr.  Frank 
W.  Draper  on  "  The  Evil  Effects  of  the  Use  of  Arsenic  in  Certain  Green 
Colors,"  in  which  he  states  that  an  awakening  of  the  community  to  some 
appreciation  of  the  dangers  from  the  use  of  these  colors  would  cause  a 
cessation  of  demand  for  such  papers.  The  correctness  of  Dr.  Draper's 
reasoning  was  shown  later  in  an  investigation  in  1900  just  before  the 
law  relating  to  arsenic  in  wall  paper  went  into  effect. 

In  the  same  report  Henry  B.  Hill,  of  Harvard  University,  presented 
an  article  upon  "  The  Adulterations  and  Impurities  of  Foods,"  in  which 
he  described  his  investigations  upon  the  action  of  acid  fruits  on  tin  and 
the  adulteration  of  vinegar  and  coffee. 

The  fourth  report,  1873,  contained  a  "  Eeport  of  the  Character  of 
Substances  used  for  Flavoring  Articles  of  Food  and  Drinks,"  by  Dr. 
Henry  K.  Oliver,  as  a  result  of  reported  cases  of  sickness  from  eating 
"  pistachio "  ice  cream.  Prussic  acid  was  found  in  the  bittei  almond 
oil  supplied  to  the  manufacturers  of  the  ice  cream.  The  report  deals 
with  the  synthetic  esters  and  essential  oils  used  as  flavors. 

Dr.  Derby,  secretary  of  the  Board,  reports  in  the  same  3rear  the  results 
of  an  investigation  of  the  "  Food  of  the  People  of  Massachusetts." 

Dr.  Arthur  Nichols  and  Prof.  James  F.  Babcock  report  upon  the 
adulteration  of  milk,  giving  analyses  of  pure  milk,  of  market  milk  and 
a.  history  of  Massachusetts  milk  legislation  to  date,  with  suggestions  for 
the  establishment  of  a  minimum  standard  of  composition  below  which 
milk  could  not  be  sold. 


48 

H.  B.  Hill  reports  his  investigation  upon  impurities  in  food,  dealing 
with  confectionery  and  pickles. 

The  report  for  1875  contained  an  article  on  "  Ou&.  Meat  Supply  and 
Public  Health,"  by  Dr.  C.  S.  Folsom,  secretary  of  the  Board,  dealing 
with  putrid,  parasitic  and  infected  meat. 

The  report  of  1879  contains  an  article  on  "  Trichina?  in  Belation  to 
the  Public  Health,"  by  F.  S.  Billings,  and  one  by  Ellen  H.  Richards 
on  the  "  Adulteration  of  Some  Staple  Groceries." 

In  1882  new  interest  had  been  awakened  in  the  subject  by  the  action 
of  the  National  Board  of  Trade,  through  whose  committee  of  experts 
a  bill  was  prepared  "  To  Prevent  the  Adulteration  of  Food  and  Drugs." 
This  bill,  substantially  in  the  form  recommended,  has  been  enacted  by 
the  States  of  New  York,  Massachusetts  and  Michigan. 

After  setting  forth  what  should  be  held  to  constitute  adulteration, 
and  defining  the  terms  "  food  "  and  "  drug,"  the  bill  which  was  enacted 
provided  that  the  State  Board  of  Health,  Lunacy  and  Charity  should 
appoint  inspectors  and  analysts;  should  make  all  necessary  investiga- 
tions and  inquiries  in  reference  to  the  food  and  drug  supply;  should 
make  rules  and  regulations  concerning  the  collection  and  examination  of 
samples;  and  should  establish  standards  not  specifically  provided.  For 
carrying  out  the  provisions  of  the  act  the  sum  of  $3,000  was  appropriated. 
The  law  was  approved  on  May  28,  1882,  and  went  into  effect  three 
months  later ;  whereupon  the  Board  appointed  an  analyst  of  foods  and  an 
analyst  of  drugs,  who  were  directed  to  collect  and  examine  samples,  with 
such  assistance  as  they  might  require,  the  appropriation  being  not  large 
enough  to  permit  the  employment  of  regular  inspectors. 

The  investigations  made  in  the  two  fields  showed  that  the  market  was  I 
in  a  most  deplorable  condition.    In  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  law  relating  J 
to  the  inspection  and  sale  of  milk  had  been  in  existence  for  many  years,  I 
the  milk  supply  was  found  to  be  especially  poor,   adulteration  being 
almost  universally  practiced  in  the  cities  and  large  towns.     So  great  was 
this  evil  that  in  the  following  year,  1883,  the  Legislature  amended  the 
act  by  increasing  the  appropriation  to  $5,000,  with  the  proviso  that  two- 
fifths  of  the  whole  should  be  expended  in  enforcing  the  milk  law.     Ac- 
cordingly, two  additional  analysts  were  appointed,  whose  sole  duty  it 
was  to  look  after  this  part  of  the  work. 

Owing  to  the  conditions  found  by  the  several  analysts  to  exist  in  their  \ 
different  fields,  the  Legislature  of  1884  made  further  amendments  of  the 
food  and  drug  act,  the  most  important  of  which  increased  the  appropria- 
tion to  $10,000,  whereof  not  less  than  $6,000  should  be  devoted  to  the 
enforcement   of  the   laws    relating  to   milk   and   milk  products.      This 


49 

enabled  the  Board  to  appoint  regular  inspectors,  who,  by  law,  were 
clothed  with  all  the  authority  given  to  local  inspectors. 

The  general  law  relating  to  food  and  drugs  was  not  materially 
amended  between  1884  and  1901 ;  but  in  the  latter  year  it  was  strength- 
ened by  the  addition  of  a  section  prohibiting  the  use  of  certain  preserva- 
tives, unless  their  presence  and  percentage  are  clearly  set  forth  on  the 
label  in  letters  of  a  certain  size,  and  by  further  legislation  regulating  the 
manner  in  which  so-called  compounds  shall  be  labelled  so  that  the  pur- 
chaser may  know  their  percentage  composition.  The  amendment  relative 
to  the  use  of  preservatives  settled  a  much- vexed  question;  for,  while  the 
law  prohibited  the  sale  of  foods  containing  ingredients  injurious  to  the 
health  of  the  consumer,  authorities  are  by  no  means  in  agreement  as  to 
whether  certain  of  the  substances  employed  as  preservatives  exert  an 
injurious  influence  on  the  system.  The  amendment  waives  the  question, 
and  leaves  it  to  the  consumer  to  decide  whether  he  cares  to  assume  the 
risk;  but  the  vendor  must  acquaint  him  of  the  fact  that  the  product  is 
chemically  preserved. 

The  sum  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  State  Board  of  Health,  which 
has  had  charge  of  the  administration  of  the  general  law  since  its  re-es- 
tablishment as  a  separate  Board  in  1886,  has  been  increased  from  time 
to  time  to  $17,500,  which  is  its  present  annual  appropriation. 

In  the  annual  report  of  the  State  Board  of  Health  for  1883  appears 
the  report  on  food  and  drug  inspection  covering  the  work  of  1882  and 
1883.  The  analysts  employed  were  Dr.  Edward  S.  Wood,  analyst  of 
food,  Dr.  Bennett  F.  Davenport,  analyst  of  drugs,  and  Dr.  Charles  Har- 
rington and  Prof.  Charles  A.  Goessmann,  analysts  of  milk.  The  report 
of  the  analysts  of  milk  for  this  year,  compared  with  the  report  of  1911, 
gives  a  good  idea  of  the  value  of  food  inspection  to  the  community.  In 
1883  there  were  examined  305  samples  of  milk  with  an  average  compo- 
sition of  11.56  per  cent,  total  solids.  In  1911  the  average  of  4,630  sam- 
ples, including  those  skimmed  and  watered,  was  12.78  per  cent,  solids, 
4.10  per  cent.  fat. 

During  the  first  eight  years  of  the  law  the  analyses  of  samples  was 
conducted  by  the  analysts  of  the  Board  in  their  own  laboratories,  but  in 
the  year  1891  most  of  the  work  was  placed  in  charge  of  one  chemist, 
Dr.  Charles  P.  Worcester,  in  a  small  laboratory  established  by  the  Board 
in  an  office  building,  where  it  was  conducted  until  the  present  laboratory 
in  the  State  House  was  ready  for  occupancy,  in  1895.  Dr.  Worcester 
occupied  his  position  until  his  death,  Oct.  9,  1898.  He  was  succeeded 
by  his  assistant,  the  late  Albert  E.  Leach,  who  resigned,  on  account  of 
ill  health,  in  1909.  He  was  succceeded  by  his  assistant,  Hermann  C. 
Lythgoe,  the  present  incumbent. 


50 

The  yearly  reports  of  the  Board  since  1883  show  a  gradual  improve- 
ment in  the  condition  of  the  food  supply  of  the  State,  and  at  present 
there  is  hut  little  adulteration  practiced  except  in*  the  case  of  milk. 
Milk  has  been  and  always  will  be  extensively  adulterated,  on  account 
of  the  facility  with  which  adulteration  can  be  practiced.  There  is  no 
doubt  but  that  the  market  would  be  flooded  with  adulterated  milk  if 
inspection  ceased,  because  unscrupulous  dealers  would  adulterate  their 
milk,  selling  it  at  a  lower  price,  and  the  public  would  buy  the  cheaper 
article. 

The  chart  giving  the  ratio  of  the  adulteration  of  food  and  drug  sam- 
ples collected  from  1883  to  1911  shows  the  value  of  the  work  of  the 
department.  This  is  particularly  pointed  out  in  the  case  of  spices  which 
have  been  systematically  examined,  and  the  dealers  in  the  adulterated 
samples  either  notified  or  prosecuted,  resulting  in  a  gradual  diminution 
in  adulteration  from  66  per  cent,  in  1883  to  0  in  1909-10  and  1911. 

The  occasional  increases  in  adulteration  in  some  years  is  due  to  a 
change  in  the  character  of  the  samples  collected.  Thus,  if  a  particular 
variety  of  food  or  drug  has  been  found  to  be  pure  for  two  or  three 
vears,  the  collection  of  that  substance  will  cease  and  more  energy  will 
be  expended  upon  those  substances  showing  a  higher  ratio  of  adultera- 
tion. 

-  Fluctuations  in  milk  adulterations  occur  as  more  or  less  samples  are 
collected  from  suspected  producers  rather  than  from  the  retailers.  Of 
the  total  samples  collected,  the  following  are  the  percentages  of  adultera- 
tion during  the  past  twenty-nine  years :  — 


Per  Cent. 

Per  Cent 

1S83,  .          .50 

1S9S,  .           .  27 

1884,  . 

58 

1S99, 

29 

1885,  . 

44 

1900, 

33 

J8S6,  . 

42 

1901, 

33 

1887,  . 

33 

1902, 

32 

1888,  . 

28 

1903, 

31 

1889,  . 

26 

1904, 

25 

1890,  . 

27 

1905, 

26 

1891,  . 

27 

1906, 

23 

1892,  . 

31 

1907, 

25 

1893,  . 

30 

1908, 

22 

1894,  . 

31 

1909, 

18 

1895,  . 

42 

1910, 

17 

1896,  . 

34 

1911, 

19 

1897,  . 

29 

PfR-CENT 


£5 


51 

In  1906  a  law  was  passed  prohibiting  the  sale  of  cocaine  or  oi'  proprie- 
tary medicines  containing  cocaine  which  had  been  advertised  as  unsalable 
by  the  State  Board  of  Health.  As  a  result  of  the  enforcement  of  this 
law  the  sale  of  catarrh  powders,  asthma  cures  and  similar  prepa rations 
containing  cocaine  has  been  practically  eliminated.  The  value  of  this 
work  has  been  enhanced  by  the  passage  of  laws  prohibiting  persons  from 
having  on  their  person  or  being  present  where  opium,  cocaine  or  other 
hypnotic  drugs  are  kept  except  for  legitimate  purposes.  This  makes  it 
undesirable  to  carry  cocaine  or  morphine,  and  no  doubt  prevents  to  some 
extent  the  habit  of  using  such  drugs. 

Elsewhere  in  this  pamphlet  is  given  a  list  of  special  papers  relating 
to  food  and  drugs  published  in  the  reports  of  the  Board  and  in  other 
journals. 


52 


7.    INSPECTION  OF  DAIRIES. 

Eecognizing  the  well-demonstrated  importance  of  an  improved  milk 
supply  in  its  relation  to  the  public  health,  the  Board,  acting  under  its 
general  authority,  began  on  March  1,  1905,  a  systematic  investigation 
of  dairies  and  the  conditions  under  which  milk  is  produced  for  public 
sale.  The  examination  embraces  an  inquiry  into  the  health  and  condi- 
tion of  cleanliness  of  the  cows,  the  sanitary  condition  of  the  stables,  the 
water  supply,  the  methods  of  drawing,  cooling,  handling  and  transpor- 
tation, and  other  matters  germane  to  the  subject. 

A  separate  report  is  made  on  each  dairy  by  the  inspector  to  the  secre- 
tary of  the  Board,  who  determines  what  changes,  if  any,  in  conditions 
or  methods  are  desirable.  In  each  instance  the  producer  is  advised  as 
to  what  changes  are  deemed  necessary  in  the  interest  of  a  wholesome 
milk  supply.  At  the  same  time  the  local  health  authorities  of  the  city 
or  town  wherein  the  milk  is  being  produced  or  sold  are  notified,  and 
they  are  requested  to  lend  their  assistance  in  securing  improved  condi- 
tions, and  if  the  milk  is  being  handled  by  contracting  concerns,  similar 
letters  are  sent  to  them. 

The  investigation  demonstrated  from  the  start  its  necessity,  for  a  con- 
dition of  affairs  was  disclosed  which  was  deplorable.  It  is  true  that  in 
most  cases  the  objectionable  conditions  were  susceptible  of  improvement 
without  the  expenditure  of  money  and  without  involving  anything  more 
than  ordinary  care  in  the  matter  of  common  cleanliness. 

The  inspection  of  dairies  through  the  Commonwealth  has  been  con- 
tinued up  to  the  present  time,  with  more  or  less  gratifying  results.  The 
filthy  and  revolting  conditions  found  at  the  inception  of  the  work  are 
seldom  found  now;  there  has  been  marked  improvement  in  the  produc- 
tion of  milk  all  along  the  line.  The  agitation  for  a  clean,  wholesome 
milk  supply  has  been  taken  up  by  the  milk  producer,  dealer  and  con- 
sumer; cities  and  towns  are  uniting  in  their  efforts  to  improve  their 
milk  supplies.  While  the  conditions  at  the  source  of  the  milk  supply  are 
much  improved,  a  strong  concerted  action  for  a  continuance  of  such 
improvement  cannot  be  expected  until  the  proper  authority  is  placed  in 
the  hands  of  a  central  body  such  as  the  State  Board  of  Health. 

The  following  table  shows  the  number  of  dairies  examined  each  year 
from  1905  to  1911,  inclusive.  It  also  indicates  the  number  of  dairies 
where  objectionable  conditions  were  observed,  as  well  as  the  number 
where  conditions  were  commendable. 


53 


Inspection  of  Dairies,  — 1905-11. 


Year. 


Total 
Number  of 

Dairies 
examined. 


Number  of 
Dairies 
where  One  or 
More  Ob- 
jectionable 
Features  were 
observed. 


Number  of 
Dairies  > 
found  to  be 
without  Ob- 
jectionable 
Features. 


1905,  . 

1906,  ... 

1906,  outside  dairies, 

1907,  . 

1907,  outside  dairies, 

1908,  . 

1908,  outside  dairies, 

1909,  . 

1909,  outside  dairies, 

1910,  .  •      . 

1910,  outside  dairies, 

1911,  . 

1911,  outside  dairies, 


2,151 

3,267 

154 

2,054 

660 

2,213 

18 

1,439 

332 

1,983 

70 

2,067 

2 

16,410 


1,720 

2,219 

138 

1,350 

455 

1,028 

7 

758 

159 

700 

37 

736 

1 

9,30S 


431 

1,048 

16 

704 

205 

1,185 

11 

681 

173 

1,283 

33 

1,331 

1 

7,102 


54 


8.    THE  STATE  INSPECTORS  OF  HEALTH. 

In  1907  the  Legislature  of  Massachusetts  enacted  a  law  whereby  the 
State  was  divided  into  health  districts  and  a  physician  was  appointed 
in  each  district  as  State  Inspector  of  Health.  The  original  number  of 
districts  was  15,  was  later  changed  to  14,  and  was  recently  reduced  by 
the  State  Board  of  Health  to  12. 

The  duties  of  the  State  Inspectors  of  Health  are  in  part  advisory, 
and  in  part  executive.  The  following  is  a  brief  outline  of  their  powers 
and  duties :  — 

I.     Advisory  Authority. 

1.  Inquiry  and  Action  concerning  Influences  and  Diseases  that  are  or 

may  be  Dangerous  to  the  Public  Health. 
The  State  Inspectors  of  Health  are  authorized  to  gather  -all  in- 
formation possible  concerning  all  influences  that  are 
or  may  be  dangerous  to  the  public  health  and  con- 
cerning the  prevalence  of  tuberculosis  and  other  com- 
municable diseases.  They  disseminate  knowledge  as  to 
the  best  methods  of  preventing  the  spread  of  diseases 
dangerous  to  the  public  health,  and  take  such  steps  as, 
after  consulting  with  the  State  Board  of  Health  and 
the  local  health  authorities,  are  deemed  advisable  for 
their  eradication. 

2.  Dealings  with  Local  Health  Authorities  as  to :  — 

A.  Rules  and  Regulations. 

The  State  Inspectors  of  Health  have  been  of  considerable  assist- 
ance to  local  health  authorities  in  aiding  them  draft 
rules  and  regulations;  and  as  the  work  of  the  local  au- 
thorities is  gradually  placed  on  a  higher  plane,  the  men 
can  be  of  even  greater  assistance,  under  the  guidance 
of  the  State  Board  of  Health,  in  obtaining  uniformity 
in  health  work  throughout  the  State. 

B.  Diseases  Dangerous  to  the  Public  Health. 
The  State  Inspectors  of  Health :  — 

(a)   Consult   with   the   local   health   authorities  as   to   the  best 

methods  of  preventing  the  spread  of  diseases  dangerous 

to  the  public  health. 
(6)   Advise  the  local  authorities  to  urge  physicians  to  repoi't 

any  known  case  of  such  a  disease  and  to  see  that  the 

notification  laws  are  enforced. 


55 

(c)  Investigate  and  report  to  local  boards  of  health  any  known 

cases  of  ophthalmia  neonatorum,  so  that  the  law  re- 
quiring' local  boards  of  health  "  to  take  such  immediate 
action  as  they  may  deem  necessary  in  order  that  blind- 
ness may  be  prevented  "  may  be  enforced. 

(d)  Assist  the  local  authorities  as  to  the  manner  of  earing  for 

persons  found  ill  in  a  neglected  condition  with  such 
disease. 

(e)  Advise  and  assist  local  authorities  in  the  enforcement  of 

quarantine. 
(/)    Report  to  the  State  Board  of  Health  and  the  proper  local 

health  authority  every  communicable  disease  discovered 

in  a  tenement  workshop. 
(g)   Notify  the  State  Board  of  Health   and  the  proper  local 

health   authority  of  the   existence   of   any  such   disease 

in  factories  and  workshops. 

C.  Nuisances  and  Causes  of  Sickness. 

In  the  work  of  abating  nuisances  the  State  Inspectors  of  Health 
advise  local  authorities  as  to  the  prevention  of  condi- 
tions which  are  dangerous  to  health,  or  which  are 
offensive  to  the  senses  and  render  habitations  uncom- 
fortable. 

D.  Sanitation  of  Tenement  Homes. 

The  State  Inspectors  of  Health  have  been  of  considerable  assist- 
ance to  the  local  authorities  in  dealing  with  the  problem 
of  the  sanitation  of  tenement  homes.  A  high  standard 
of  sanitation  in  factories,  brought  about  largely  by 
rigid  inspection,  should  go  hand  in  hand  with  improved 
home  conditions,  particularly  the  tenement  homes. 

E.  Statistics. 

Efforts  have  been  made  to  bring  about  uniformity  in  recording 
statistics  relating  to  health  work  of  all  kinds. 
Inquiry  concerning  the  Health  of  Minors  employed  in  Factories. 

The  work  of  obtaining  information  concerning  the  health  of 
minors  employed  in  factories  calls  for  a  knowledge  of 
the  ill  health  or  physical  unfitness  of  the  minors.  It 
involves  obtaining  personal  and  family  histories,  record- 
ing observations,  and,  in  a  considerable  proportion  of 
cases,  making  physical  examinations. 
Sanitation  of  School  Buildings. 

The  law  requires  the  State  Inspectors  of  Health  to  make  such 
examinations  of  school  buildings  as  in  the  opinion  of 
the  State  Board  of  Health  the  protection  of  the  health 
of  the  pupils  may  require. 


56 

5.  Matters  relating  to  Water  Supply  and  Sewerage. 

The  State  Inspectors  of  Health,  by  intelligent  co-operation,  as- 
sist the  State  Board  of  Health  materially  in  forward- 
ing the  work  of  the  water  supply  and  sewerage 
department.  The  iaw  provides  for  adequate  supply  of 
pure  drinking  water  for  factory  employees,  and  for 
proper  disposal  of  sewage  from  factories  and  foundries. 
II.     Executive  Authority. 

1.  Sanitation  of  Factories,  Workshops  and  Other  Industrial  Establish- 

ments. 
The  work  relating  to  the  sanitation  of  factories,  workshops  and 
other  industrial  establishments  includes  the  enforcement 
of  certain  laws.  It  also  includes  the  study  of  the  effect 
of  occupation  upon  the  health  of  persons  employed  in 
such  establishments. 

2.  Exclusion  of  Minors  from  Occupations  deemed  to  be  Injurious  to 

Health. 
In  the  enforcement  of  the  law  which  provides  for  the  exclusion 
of  minors  from  occupations  or  processes  deemed  by  the 
State  Board  of  Health  to  be  injurious  to  health,  the 
State  Inspectors  of  Health  consider  carefully  the  vary- 
ing conditions  associated  with  a  given  occupation  or 
process,  as  well  as  the  condition  of  health  of  each  minor 
at  work. 

3.  Sanitation  of  Tenements  where  Clothing  is  made. 

The  primary  object  of  inspection  of  tenement  workrooms  is  to 
guard  the  public  health  from  the  spread  of  contagious 
diseases  by  means  of  infected  wearing  apparel.  The 
work  accomplished  has  resulted  in  the  maintenance  of 
higher  sanitary  standards  in  the  congested  tenement 
homes.  Moreover,  the  friendly  visits  to  the  homes  and 
the  close  personal  contact  with  the  workers  have  been 
a  great  educational  force  in  the  development  of  higher 
standards  of  hygienic  living: 

4.  Inspection  of  Mercantile  Establishments. 

Inspection  of  mercantile  establishments  is  made  (a)  to  deter- 
mine whether  a  sufficient  number  of  seats  are  provided 
for  women  employees  and  whether  there  are  proper 
toilet  rooms  for  both  sexes  in  such  establishments,  and 
(b)  to  enforce  the  statute  provisions  relating  thereto. 
5.  Sanitation  of  Stationhouses. 

In  accordance  with  the  law  providing  for  an  examination  of  the 
sanitary  conditions  in  stationhouses,  houses  of  detention 
and  lock-ups  in  the  Commonwealth,  the  State  Inspectors 
of    Health    consider    the    ventilation,    lighting,    heating, 


57 

construction  of  cells,  care  and  use  of  bedding  and  dishes 
used  for  food,  method  of  sewage  disposal,  and  method 
of  supplying  drinking  water  to   prisoners  in    all  such 
buildings. 
6.  Sanitation  of  Slaughterhouses. 

Under  the  existing  laws  all  slaughterhouses   are  subject  to  in- 
spection by  the  State  Inspectors  of  Health. 

Of  the  many  duties  imposed  by  the  Legislature  upon  the  State  Inspec- 
tors of  Health,  none  are  of  greater  importance  or  more  far-reaching  in 
their  effects  upon  the  conservation  of  the  health  of  the  inhabitants 
than  is  the  requirement  that  State  Inspectors  of  Health  inform  them- 
selves concerning  all  influences  that  are,  or  may  be,  dangerous  to  the 
public  health  within  their  districts,  and  to  gather  all  possible  informa- 
tion relative  to  the  prevalence  of  communicable  diseases,  and  to  co-oper- 
ate with  the  local  health  authorities  in  their  eradication. 

Acting  in  an  advisory  capacity,  the  State  Inspectors  of  Health  have 
been  intermediaries  between  the  State  Board  of  Health  and  the  local 
health  authorities,  thus  making  the  resources  of  the  State  available  to 
the  small  communities  throughout  the  State.  Frequent  conferences  are 
held  by  the  State  Inspectors  of  Health  with  the  local  boards  of  health 
in  the  various  districts,  and  assistance  is  rendered  by  them  on  a  great 
variety  of  problems  on  health  matters  which  is  apt  to  come  up  in  any 
community. 

The  State  Inspectors  of  Health,  moreover,  keep  in  touch  with  the 
incidence  of  communicable  diseases  in  the  respective  cities  and  towns 
within  their  districts,  and  if  it  appears  that  an  unusually  large  number 
of  cases  of  a  communicable  disease  occur,  or  if  any  outbreak  occurs  in 
any  place  within  a  district,  the  State  Inspector  of  Health  makes  an 
immediate  investigation  to  determine,  if  possible,  the  source  of  infection. 

Besides  the  general  duties  and  advisory  powers  to  local  boards  of 
health,  the  State  Inspectors  of  Health  were  given  the  enforcement  of  all 
laws  relating  to  the  health  of  persons  employed  in  industrial  establish- 
ments. "Massachusetts  was  thus  the  first  State  in  the  Union  to  recognize 
that  the  sanitary  inspection  of  factories  is  essentially  a  health  matter 
and  should  be  under  the  charge  of  the  central  health  authority  of  the 
State. 

The  work  of  the  State  Inspectors  of  Health  for  the  last  five  years  has 
already  resulted  in  the  accumulation  of  a  vast  amount  of  material  on 
occupational  hygiene  and  on  factory  sanitation.  Not  only  have  vast 
changes  been  brought  about  in  the  industrial  establishments  of  the  State, 


58 

but  extensive  investigations  have  been  made  of  a  great  variety  of  indus- 
tries and  processes  in  which  workers  are  exposed  to  influences  danger- 
ous to  health.  Special  investigations  have  thus  been  'made  of  a  number 
of  trades  in  which  workers  are  exposed  to  dusts,  to  irritating  and  poison- 
ous fumes,  to  extreme  degrees  of  temperature  and  humidity,  and  to  gen- 
eral unsanitary  working  conditions.  The  industries  thus  studied  include 
the  textile  industry;  the  pearl  industry;  felt  hat  industry;  mattress  and 
curled  hair  industry ;  the  shoe  industry ;  the  rubber  industry ;  the  making 
of  jewelry;  metal  polishing  and  buffing;  a  group  of  industries  in  which 
workers  are  exposed  to  lead  poisoning,  such  as  printing,  stereotyping, 
monotyping,  linotyping,  electrotyping,  paint  manufacturing,  potteries 
and  manufacturing  of  tile ;  foundries ;  laundries ;  cigar  factories  :  candy 
factories  and  the  clothing  industry. 

As  the  direct  result  of  the  investigations  and  observations  of  the  State 
Inspectors  of  Health  and  of  the  reports  thereon  to  the  State  Board  of 
Health,  legislation  of  inestimable  value  in  protecting  the  health  of  young 
persons  was  enacted  in  1910  whereby  minors  are  excluded  from  trades 
and  processes  which  are  designated  by  the  State  Board  of  Health  as  inju- 
rious to  health. 


The  Legislature  of  1912  enacted  a  law  creating  the  State  Board  of 
Labor  and  Industries.  All  duties  of  the  State  Inspectors  of  Health 
relative  to  the  enforcement  of  laws  in  factories,  workshops  and  mercantile 
establishments  are  by  that  law  transferred  to  the  newly  created  depart- 
ment. The  State  Inspectors  of  Health  will  now,  therefore,  devote 
practically  their  whole  time  investigating  the  occurrence  of  diseases  dan- 
gerous to  the  public  health,  and  acting  in  advisory  capacity  to  the  local 
boards  of  health. 


59 


9.    MEMBERS  OF  THE  STATE  BOARD  OF  HEALTH  FROM 

1869-1912. 


Members  of  the  State  Board  of  Health  prom  its  Organization  in 

to  1879. 
P.    Emory   Aldrieh 1869- 


Henry  I.  Bowditch,  M.D 

Wm.  C.  Chapin,      . 

R.  T.  Davis,  M.D.,  . 

George  Derby, 

C.   F.   Folsom, 

G.  V.  Fox,      . 

R.   Frothingham,     . 

J.  C.  Hoadley, 

T.  B.  Newhall, 

Warren  Sawyer, 

David  L.  Webster,  . 


Chairman, 


1869- 
1869 
1869- 
1869- 
1874- 
1871- 
1869- 
1873- 
1873- 
1869- 
1873- 


1869 

72 
79 

79 
73 
79 

72 
79 
79 
79 
■72 
■79 


Members  who  served  on  the  Committee  on  Health  of  the  Combined 
Board  from  1879  to  1886. 

Henry  I.  Bowditch,  M.D.  Alfred  Hosmer,  M.D. 

George  P.  Carter.  Thomas  Talbot. 

R.  T.  Davis,  M.D.  Henry  P.  Waleott,  M.D. 
J.  C.  Hoadlev. 


Members  of  the  State  Board  of  Health  since  its  Re-organization  in 

1886. 


Julius  H.  Appleton, 
John  W.  Bartol,  M.D,,  . 
Theodore  C.  Bates, 
Clement  F.  Coogan,1 
Frank  W.  Draper,  M.D., 
Joseph  W.  Hastings,  M.D., 
James  W.  Hull, 
Elisha  U.  Jones, 
Thornton  K.  Lothrop.     . 
Robert  W.  Lovett,  M.D.,1 
C.  E.  MoGillieuddy,1       . 
Julian  A.  Mead,  M.D.,1  . 
Hiram  F.  Mills,  C.E.,1    . 


1886-90 

1902-07 

1887-88 

1911- 

1886-1901 

1889-1904 

1893-1911 

1886-1904 

1886-89 

1907- 

1911- 

1895- 

1886- 


Members  of  the  Board  at  the  present  tin 


60 


Joseph  A.  Plouff,1  . 
Charles  H.  Porter,' . 
John  M.  Raymond, 
General  Morris  Sehaff, 
Gerard  C.  Tobey,  . 
Henry  P.  Walcott,  M.D 
James  White, 


Chairman? 


1911- 

1893-1911 

1890-92 

1891-92 

1893-1911 

1886- 

1886 


Samuel  W.  Abbott,  MJJ.,  Secretary,     . 

Charles  Harrington,  M.D.,   Secretary,   . 

Mark  W.  Richardson,   MJJ.,   Secretary,2 

William  C.  Hanson,  MJJ.,  Assistant  to  the  Secretary, 

F.  P.  Stearns,  C.E.,  Engineer,     '  . 

X.   H.   Goodnough,    C.    E.,   Engineer^ 

Thomas    M.    Drown,    M.D.,    Chemist* 

H.  W.  Clark,  Chemist,2  . 

Theobald   Smith,  M.D.,  Pathologist; 

Albert  E.  Leach,  S.B.,  Analyst  of  Food  and  Drugs, 

Hermann  C.  Lythgoe,  S.B.,  Analyst  of  Food  and  Dr 


ugs, 


1886-1905 

1905-09 

1909- 

1907- 

1886-1894 

1895- 

1886-1895 

1896- 

1896- 

1900-1908 

1907- 


Members  of  the  Board  at  the  present  time. 
Connected  with  the  Board  at  the  present  time. 
Consulting  Chemist  1896-1904. 


61 


10.  TITLES  OF  MANY  OF  THE  SPECIAL  INVESTIGATIONS 
CONTAINED  IN  THE  REPORTS  OF  THE  STATE  BOARD 
OF  HEALTH,  AND  PUBLICATIONS  FROM  THE  BOARD'S 
LABORATORIES  IN  OTHER  JOURNALS. 

The  annual  reports  of  the  State  Board  of  Health  contain  the  reports 
of  the  work  of  the  various  departments  of  the  Board,  together  with 
special  investigations  or  contributions  during  the  year  from  any  labora- 
tory or  department  of  the  Board.  Many  of  the  researches  carried  on  in 
the  laboratories  of  the  Board  have  been  published  in  medical,  chemical, 
engineering  and  other  journals.  The  following  is  a  list  of  titles  of  some 
of  the  principal  special  papers  that  have  appeared  in  the  reports  of  the 
State  Board  of  Health,  and  an  incomplete  list  of  publications  from  the 
Board's  laboratories  in  other  journals. 

On  Matters  relatikg  to  Water  Supplies  and  Sewerage. 

1870.  —  Poisoning   by   Lead-Pipe   used   for   the    Conveyance    of   Drinking 

Water. 
Mystic  Pond  and  its  Source  of  Supply. 

1871.  —  Mill-Dams  and  Other  Water  Obstructions. 

1872.  —  On  Sewerage;  Sewage;   the  Pollution  of  Streams;  Water  Supply 

of  Towns. 
Drainage  for  Health. 

1873.  —  The  Present  Condition  of  Certain  Rivers  of  Massachusetts  together 

with  Considerations  touching  the  Water  Supply  of  Towns. 
The  Use  of  Zinced  or  Galvanized  Iron  for  the  Storage  and  Con- 
veyance of  Drinking  Water. 

1875.  —  A  Special  Report  on  — 

1.  The  Pollution  of  Rivers. 

2.  The  Water  Supply,   Drainage  and  Sewerage  of  the  State 

from  a  Sanitary  Point  of  View. 

3.  The  Disposal  of  Sewage.  , 

4.  Summary  and  Recommendations. 
Defects  in  House  Drainage  and  their  Remedies. 
The  Surface  Drainage  of  the  Metropolitan  District. 

1876.  —  The  Pollution  of  Streams. 

Sewerage;   its  Advantages   and   Disadvantages,    Construction   and 
Maintenance. 

1877.  —  Drainage  and  Health;  Sewerage,  and  the  Pollution  of  Streams. 

The  Filtration  of  Potable  Water. 

1878.  —  Common  Defects  in  House  Drains. 


62 

1879.  —  Contamination  of  Well  Waters. 

The  Pollution  of  Streams. 

Algae  observed  in  a  Storage  Basin  of  the  Bostor*J3upply.  and  Some 

Impurities  of  Drinking  Water  caused  by  Vegetable  Growths. 
The  Effect  on  Health  of  Certain  Algae  in  the  Mystic  Water  Supply. 
The  Drainage  of  Summer  Hotels  and  Country  Boarding  Houses. 

1880.  —  The  PoUution  of  Streams. 

Separate  System  of  Sewerage. 
1882.  — The   Sewerage   of   Nahant. 
1S83.  —  Tubular  Wells  for  Domestic  Water  Supply. 

Reports  Relative  to  the  Sewerage  and  Sanitary  Conditions  of  Nan- 
tucket. 
1S85.  —  Disposal  of  Sewage  at  the  Massachusetts  Reformatory. 

1889.  —  Report  upon  the  Pollution  of  Ice  Supplies. 

1890.  —  Examination  of  Water  Supplies  and  Purification  of   Sewage  and 

Water  by  Filtration. 

Suggestions  as  to  the  Selection  of  Sources  of  Water  Supply. 

Typhoid  Fever  and  its  Relation  to  Water  Supplies. 

Special  Reports  on  the  Early  Work  at  the  Lawrence  Experiment 
Station.  Two  Volumes.  Mentioned  previously. 
1S92.  —  Interpretation  of  Water  Analysis  and  the  Amount  of  Dissolved 
Oxygen  in  the  Water,  Ponds  and  Reservoirs  at  Different  Depths 
in  Winter  under  the  Ice,  and  the  Mineral  Contents  of  Some 
Waters  in  Massachusetts. 

A  Study  of  Odors  observed  in  the  Drinking  Waters  of  Massachu- 
setts. 

Seasonal  Distribution  of  Microscopic  Organisms  in  Surface  Waters. 

Experiments  upon  the  Purification  of  Sewage  at  the  Lawrence  Ex- 
periment Station. 

Experiments  at  the  Lawrence  Experiment  Station  upon  the  Puri- 
fication of  Water  by  Sand  Filtration. 

Some  Physical  Properties  of  Sand  and  Gravels  with  Special  Refer- 
ence to  their  Use  in  Filtration. 

Sewage  Disposal  of  Cities  and  Towns  of  Massachusetts  by  Inter- 
mittent Filtration. 

Report  upon  Artificial  Ice  made  in  Massachusetts. 
1893.  —  On  the  Amount  and  Character  of  Organic  Matters  in  Soil  and  its 
Drawing  on  the  Storage  of  Water  in  Reservoirs. 

Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 
rence Experiment  Station. 

The  Filter  of  the  Water  Supply  of  the  City  of  Lawrence  and  its 
Results. 

1891.  —  Composition  of  the  Water  of  Deep  Wells. 

The  Bacterial  Contents  of  Certain  Ground  Waters. 
Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 
rence Experiment  Station. 
Physical  and  Chemical  Properties  of  Sands. 


63 

1895.  —  Sewage  Purification  of  the  Cities  and  Towns  of  Massachusetts. 
The  Hardness  of  Water  and  Methods  by  which  it  is  determined. 
Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 
rence Experiment  Station  in  1895. 
Methods  employed  for  the  Quantitative  Determination  of  Bacteria 
in  Sewage  and  Water. 
1S96.  —  Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 
rence  Experiment  Station   in   1S96. 

1897.  —  Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 

rence   Experiment   Station   in   1897. 

1898.  —  Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 

rence Experiment  Station   in   1898. 

An  Investigation  of  the  Action  of  Water  upon  Lead,  Tin  and  Zinc 
with  Special  Eeference  to  the  Use  of  Lead  Pipes  in  Massachu- 
setts Water  Supplies. 

Purification  of  the  Sewage  of  Cities  and  Towns  in  Massachusetts. 

1899.  —  The  Occurrence  of  Iron   in   Ground  Waters  and  Experiments   on 

Methods  of  Removal. 

1900.  —  The  Action  of  Water  upon  Metallic  or  Metal-lined  Service  Pipes 

and  Methods  for  the  Separation  and  Determination  of  Metals 
in  Water. 

An  Investigation  in  regard  to  the  Retention  of  Bacteria  in  lee  when 
Ice  is  formed  under  Different  Conditions. 

Studies  of  the  Efficiency  of  Water  Filters  in  removing  Different 
Species  of  Bacteria. 

Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 
rence Experiment  Station  in  1900. 

The  Examination  of  Spring  Waters. 

1901.  —  Experimental  Filtration   of  the  Water  Supply  of  Springfield  and 

Ludlow,  Mass. 

A  Study  of  the  Stability  of  the  Effluent  of  Sewage  Filters  of 
Coarse  Materials,  including  Investigations  upon  Putrefaction  and 
Secondary  Decomposition. 

Bacteriological  Studies  at  the  Lawrence  Experiment  Station  with 
Especial  Reference  to  Determination  of  B.  Coli. 

Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 
rence  Experiment   Station   in   1901. 

1902.  —  On  the  Value  of  Tests  for  Bacteria  of  Specific  Types  as  an  Index 

of  Pollution. 

Effect  of  Sewage  Disposal  in  Massachusetts. 

Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 
rence Experiment  Station  in  1902. 

1903.  —  Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 

rence Experiment  Station  in  1903. 

1904.  —  Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 

rence Experiment  Station  in  1904. 


64 

1905.  —  Experiments  on  the  Removal  of  Organisms  from  the  Waters  of 
Ponds  and  Reservoirs  by  the  Use  of  Copper  Sulphate. 

Investigations  concerning  Absorption  and  Sedimentation  of  Copper 
Sulphate  used  as  an  Algicide  and  concerning  the  Bactericidal 
Properties  of  Copper  and  Copper  Sulphate. 

Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 
rence Expei-iment  Station  in  1905. 

Studies  on  the  Pollution  of  Shellfish. 
1906. — Experiments  on  the  Purification  of  Sewage  and  Water  at  the  Law- 
rence Experiment  Station  in  1906. 

Significance  of  the  Numbers  of  Bacteria  in  Water  and  Sewage 
Developing  at  Different  Temperatures. 

1908.  —  A  Review  of  Twenty-one  Years'  Experiments  upon  the  Purifica- 

tion of  Sewage  at  the  Lawrence  Experiment  Station. 

1909.  —  Disposal   and   Purification   of   Factory  Wastes   or  Manufacturing 

Sewage. 

1910.  —  Studies  of  the  Relative  Corrosion  of  Metal  Pipes  by  Waters. 

1911.  —  Experiments   upon  the  Disinfection    of   Sewage  and  the  Effluents 

from  Sewage  Filters. 

Certain  Publications  in  Journals  other  than  Reports  of  the  State  Board  of 

Health. 

1888.  —  On  the  Color  and  Odor  of  Surface  Waters. 

The  Loss  on  Ignition  in  Water  Analysis. 

1889.  —  The  Determination  of  Chlorine  in  Water. 

Effect  of  Temperature  on  the  Determination  of  Ammonia  by  Ness- 

lerization. 
Determination    of    Organic   Nitrogen   in   Natural   Waters   by   the 

Kjeldahl  Method. 

1890.  —  The   Determination   of   Carbonic  Acid  in  Water,   and  the  Biear- 

bonates  of  Lime  and  Magnesia. 

1891.  —  On  the  Determination  of  Nitrates  in  Water. 

1892.  —  The  Study  of  Bacteria  in  Drinking  Water. 

1893.  —  The  Removal  of  Pathogenic  Bacteria  from  Drinking  Water  by  Sand 

Filtration. 

1891.  —  Sand  Filtration  of  Water  with  Special  Reference  to  Recent  Results 
obtained  at  Lawrence,  Mass. 

1895.  —  On  the  Proper  Reaction  of  Nutrient  Media  for  Bacterial  Cultiva- 
tion. 

1901.  —  Bacterial  Purification  of  Water  by  Freezing. 

The  Pollution  of  Streams  by  Manufactural  Wastes  and  Methods  of 

Prevention. 
Studies  of  Media  for  the  Quantitative  Estimation  of  Bacteria  in 

Water  and  Sewage. 

1902.  —  Report  of  the  Chemist  to  the  Charles  River  Dam  Committee. 


65 

Notes   on   B.    Coli    and   Allied   Forms   with    Special   Reference   to 

Neutral  Red  Reaction. 
On  Classification  and  Identification  of  Bacteria  with  Description  of 

Card  System. 
Removal  of  Color,  Organisms  and  Odor  from  Water. 

1903.  —  The  Determination  of  Carbonic  Acid  in  Drinking  Water. 

On  the  Value  of  Tests  for  Bacteria  of  Specific  Types  as  an  Index 
of  Pollution. 

1904.  —  Portable  Outfit  for  the  Determination  of  Carbonic  Acid,  Dissolved 

Oxygen  and  Alkalinity  in  Drinking  Water. 

Studies  of  Media  for  the  Quantitative  Estimation  of  Bacteria  in 
Water  and  Sewage. 

The  Functions  of  Various  Types  of  Bacteria  in  the  Purification 
of  Sewage,  with  Some  Methods  for  their  Quantitative  Deter- 
mination. 

1905.  —  The  Bacteriolysis  of  Peptones  and  Nitrates. 

Upon  the  Use  of  Copper  Sulphate  in  Water  Supplies. 

1906.  —  Collection  and  Preservation  of  Samples  of  Sewage  for  Analysis. 

Some  Data  in  Regard  to  the  Comparative  Disposition  of  Organic 
Matter  by  Sand,  Contact  and  Sprinkling  Filters. 

The  Use  of  Copper  Sulphate  in  Water  Filtration. 

A  Study  of  the  Laws  governing  the  Resistance  of  Bacillus  Coli  to 
Heat. 

A  Study  of  the  Numbers  of  Bacteria  developing  at  Different  Tem- 
peratures- and  of  the  Ratios  between  such  Numbers  with  Refer- 
ence to  their  Significance  in  the  Interpretation  of  Water  Analysis. 

Notes  in  Regard  to  the  Determination  of  Copper  in  Water. 

The  Resistance  to  Decomposition  of  Certain  Organic  Mattel's  in 
Sewage. 

On  the  Bactericidal  Action  of  Copper. 
190?.  —  Filtration  of  Public  Water  Supplies. 

Experiments  with  Methods  for  the  Rapid  Detection  of  Gelatin 
Liquefaction  in  the  Determination  of  B.  Coli. 

Trickling  Sewage  Filters  at  the  Lawrence  Experiment  Station. 

1908.  —  Investigations  of  the  Distribution  of  Sewage  upon  Trickling  Filters. 

Studies  of  Incubation  Tests. 

Studies  on  Direct  Nesslerization  of  Kjeldahl  Digestates  in  Sewage 
Analysis. 

Apparatus  and  Expedients  in  the  Bacteriological  Laboratory. 

Some  Observations  of  Methods,  Cost  and  Results  of  Sewage  Puri- 
fication Abroad. 

1909.  —  Disinfection  as  an  Adjunct  to  Water  Purification. 

1910.  —  Double  Filtration  of  Water. 

Methods  for  Testing  Shellfish  for  Pollution. 

1911.  —  A  Study  of  Carbon  in  Sewage  and  Sewage  Purification. 

1912.  —  The  Influence  of  Carbon  upon  Nitrification. 


66 


Ok  Matters  relating  to  Diseases  Dangerous  to  Public  Health, 

1869.  —  The  Prevention  of  Disease. 

1870.  —  Trichina  Disease  in  Massachusetts. 

Charbon  in  Massachusetts. 
The  Cause  of  Typhoid  Fever. 

1871 .  —  Vegetable  Parasites  and  the  Diseases  caused  by  their  Growth  upon 

Man. 
Smallpox  in  Massachusetts. 

1872.  —  Infant  Mortality. 

Analysis  of  Correspondence  and  Some  of  the  Causes  or  Antecedents 
of  Consumption. 

1873.  — •  Cerebro-spinal  Meningitis  in  Massachusetts  in  1873. 

1875.  —  Report  of  an  Outbreak  of  Intestinal  Disorder  attributable  to  the 

Contamination  of    Drinking  Water  by  Means  of  Impure  lee. 
Report  on  Registration  of  Prevalent  Diseases. 

1876.  —  Registration  of  Deaths  and  Diseases. 

1877.  —  Scarlet  Fever. 

1879.  — ■  Disinfection  ( Circular) . 

Trichinae  in  Relation  to  the  Public  Health.        » 

1880.  —  Intermittent  Fever  in  Massachusetts. 

1882.  —  Leprosy  in  its  Relation  to  Public  Health. 

1883.  —  Trichinosis. 
1884. —Epidemic  Cholera. 

Disinfection  and  Disinfectants. 

1885.  —  Malaria  in  Eastern  Massachusetts. 

1886.  —  An  Inquiry  into  the  Transmission  of  Infectious  Diseases  through 

the  Medium  of  Rags. 

1888.  —  Trichinae  in  Swine. 

1889.  — •  Intermittent  Fever  in  Massachusetts. 

The  Influenza  Epidemic  of  1889  to  1890. 

1891.  —  A  Geographical  Distribution  of  Diseases  in  Massachusetts. 

1892.  —  Reports  upon   Epidemics   of   Typhoid   Fever  in  Massachusetts  in 

1892. 

1893.  —  Isolation  Hospitals  for  Infectious  Diseases. 

1894.  —  Report  upon  Experiments  and  the  Effect  of  Feeding  upon  Trich- 

inosis in  Hogs. 
Report  upon  an  Epidemic  of  Typhoid  Fever  in  Marlborough  ap- 
parently due  to  the  Effect  of  Skimmed  Milk. 
1896.  —  A   Comparative   Study   of  the   Toxine   Production   of  Diphtheria 
Bacilli. 

1907.  —  The   Occurrence  of  Infantile  Paralysis  in  Massachusetts. 

1908.  —  The  Growth  of  Typhoid  Bacteria  in  Milk. 

Experimental   Researches   in   Tuberculosis  with   Special   Reference 
to  Etiology  and  Pathology  and  Immunity. 


67 

On  the  Prevention  of  the  Spread  of  Tuberculosis. 

Milk  as  a  Carrier  of  Infection. 

The  Occurrence  of  Infantile  Paralysis  in  Massachusetts. 

1909.  —  Infant  Mortality  and  its  Intimate  Relation  to  the  Milk  Supply. 
The  House  Fly  as  an  Agent  in  the  Dissemination  of  Infectious  Dis- 
eases. 

Ophthalmia  Neonatorum :  Preventive  Treatment. 
What  is  Diseased  Meat  and  what  is  its  Relation  to  Meat  Inspec- 
tion? 
Animal  Diseases  transmissible  to  Man. 

Origin  and  Prevalence  of  Typhoid  Fever  in  Boston  in  1909. 
The  Occurrence  of  Infantile  Paralysis  in  Massachusetts. 

1910.  —  Chemical  Disinfection. 

Insects  as  Carriers  of  Disease. 

Antityphoid  Inoculation. 

The  Occurrence  of  Infantile  Paralysis  in  Massachusetts. 

1911.  —  Progress  in  preventing  the  Spread  of  Tuberculosis. 

Eighteen  Cases  of  Tuberculosis  among  Children  employed  in  Tex- 
tile Factories. 

Prevalence  of  Tuberculosis  among  Children  employed  in  Factories 
in  Berkshire  County. 

An  Investigation  as  to  the  Occurrence  in  Massachusetts  of  Paralysis 
in  the  Lower  Animals  and  Fowls. 

The  Control  of  Typhoid  Fever. 

The  Occurrence  of  Infantile  Paralysis  in  Massachusetts. 

On  Matters  relating  to  Foodstuffs  and  their  Adulterations,  Drugs 

and  Poisons. 

1869.  —  Report  on  the  Sale  of  Poisons. 

1870.  —  Correspondence  concerning  the  Effects  of  Intoxicating  Drinks. 

Use  of  Milk  from  Cows  affected  with  "  Foot  and  Mouth  Disease." 

1871.  —  Analysis  of  Correspondence  concerning  the  Use  and  Abuse  of  In- 

toxicating Drinks. 
On  the  Evil  Effects  of  the  Use  of  Arsenic  in  Certain  Green  Colors. 
The  Adulterations  and  Impurities  of  Food. 
The  Use  and  Abuse  of  Opium. 

(1872.  —  Additional  Analysis  of  Evidence  concerning  Intoxicating  Liquors. 
Beer  Shops  and  Prohibitory  Laws. 
The  Character  of  Substances  used  for  Flavoring  Articles  for  Food 

and  Drink. 
The  Food  of  the  People  of  Massachusetts. 
The  Adulteration  of  Milk. 
The  Adulterations  and  Impurities  of  Food. 
1874.  —  Our  Meat  Supply  and  Public  Health. 
1879.  —  The  Adulterations  of  Some  Staple  Groceries. 
1882.  —  The  Adulteration  of  Food. 


68 

1883.  —  Arsenic  as  a  Domestic  Poison. 

1887.  —  Report  upon  Oleomargarine,  its  Manufacture  and  Sale,  its  Health- 

fulness  as  an  Article  of  Food. 

1888.  —  Report  on  the  Sale  and  Use  of  Opium  in  Massachusetts. 
1891.  —  Report  upon  Arsenic  in  Wall  Paper  and  Fabrics. 

1907.  —  Report  upon  the  Chemical  Examination  of  Drawn  and  Undrawn 

Poultry  kept  in  Cold  Storage. 

Report  upon  the  Growth  of  Pathogenic  Bacteria  in  Milk. 

Report  upon  the  Bacteriological  Examination  of  Drawn  and  Un- 
drawn Poultry  kept  in  Cold  Storage. 
1909.  —  A    Study   of    Some    of   the    Spore-bearing   Anaerobic   Bacteria   in 
Market  Milk. 

Publications  in  Journals  Other  than  the  Reports  of  the  State  Board  of  Health 
on  Matters  relating  to  Food  and  Drugs. 

1900.  —  Foreign  Coloring  Matter  in  Milk. 

Estimation  of  Fat  in  Condensed  Milk. 

Detection  of  "  Analine  Orange  "  in  Milk. 

Character  and  Extent  of  Food  and  Drug  Adulteration  in  Massa- 
chusetts and  the  System  of  Inspection  of  the  State  Board  of 
Health. 

1901.  —  Systematic  Inspection  of  Milk  for  Preservatives. 

1903.  —  Determination    of    Commercial    Glucose   in    Molasses,    Syrups    and 
Honey. 

Report  on  Dairy  Products. 
1901.  —  Cider  Vinegar  and  Suggested  Standards  of  Purity. 

Report  on  Tea  and  Coffee. 

Some  Phases  of  Food  Adulteration  and  Inspection. 

A   Comparative  Refractometer  Scale  for  Use  with  Oils  and  Fats. 

The  Detection  of  Watered  Milk. 

Composition  and  Adulteration  of  Ground  Mustard. 

Composition  of  Turmeric. 

1905.  —  The  Optical  Properties  of  Castor  Oil,  Cod-liver  Oil,  Xeat's-foot  Oil. 

and  a  Few  Essential  Oils. 
The  Detection  and  Determination  of  Ethyl  and  Methyl  Alcohols  in 

Mixtures  by  the  Immersion  Refractometer. 
Report  on  Dairy  Products. 
Chemical  Analyses  of  a  Few  Varieties  of  Roasted  Coffee. 

1906.  —  Report  on  Fruit  Products. 

Report  on  Dairy  Products. 

1908.  —  Report  on  Dairy  Products. 

Report  on  Vinegar. 

1909.  —  A  Comparison  of  Methods  for  the  Preparation  of  Milk  Serum. 

Report  on  Dairy  Products. 

The  Composition  of  the  Milk  on  Sale  in  Massachusetts. 

1910.  — ■  The  Relation  between  Fat  and  Calcium  in  Cream. 

The  Detection  of  Added  Water  in  Milk. 


69 

1911.  —  The  Detection  of  Benzoic  Acid  in  Coffee  Extract. 
The  Composition  of  Tincture  of  Ginger. 

The   Danger   of   Fatal  Poisoning   from   Roach   and   Other   Insect 
Powders  containing  Sodium  Fluoride. 

On  Occupational  Hygiene. 

1810.  —  Health  of  Minors  employed  in  Factories. 

1S71. — -The  Effects  on  Health  of  the  Use  of  Sewing  Machines  moved  by 

Foot  Power. 
1885.  —  Cases  of  Lead  Poisoning. 

1906.  —  Sanitary  Condition  of  Factories,  Workshops  and  Other  Establish- 

ments. 
1908.  —  Health  of  Minors  in  Factories  in  Relation  to  Industry. 
Hygiene  of  Cigar  Factories. 
Sanitation  of  Clothing  Factories. 
Occupational  Diseases. 

1910.  —  Lead  Poisoning. 

Factory  Inspection  and  Public  Health. 

1911.  —  The  Sanitary  Conditions  of  Tenement-house  Workrooms  in  Suffolk 

County  and  their  Important  Relations  to  Public  Health. 
Practical  Studies  in  Occupational  Hygiene. 
Sanitary  Conditions  in  Foundries  in  Massachusetts. 
Sanitation  in  Laundries  in  Massachusetts. 

1912.  —  Hygiene  of  the  Boot  and  Shoe  Industry  in  Massachusetts. 

On  Matters  relating  to  Health  of  Cities  and  Towns. 
1870.  —  Analysis  of  the  Mortality  of  the  City  of  Boston  in  1870. 
1873.  —  The  Work  of  Local  Boards  of  Health. 

1875.  —  The  Health  of  Boston  in  1875. 

The  Health  of  Lowell  in  1S75. 

1876.  —  The  Sanitary  Condition  of  Lynn. 

1877.  —  The  Sanitary  Condition  of  Cambridge. 

1883.  —  The  Sanitary  Condition  of  Somerville. 

1884.  —  The  Sanitary  Relations  of  Taunton. 

1907.  —  On  Infantile  Mortality  of  Boston  during  the  Period  of  June  1  to 

Nov.  30,  1907. 

On  Hygiene  of  Schoolhouses  and  Children. 

1870.  —  The  Ventilation  of  Schoolhouses. 

1873.  —  School  Hygiene. 

1876.  —  The  Growth  of  Children. 

1S77.  —  Sanitation  of  Public  Schools  in  Massachusetts. 

1878.  —  The  Growth  of  Children :  a  Supplementary  Paper  with  Suggestions 

in  Regard  to  Methods  of  Research. 

1879.  —  Care  of  Young  Children.     (Circular.) 
1S80.  —  Schoolhouses  and  Sanitation. 


70 

1884.  —  The  Sanitary  Conditions  of   School  Buildings  in  Massachusetts. 

1887.  —  The  Heating  and  Ventilating  of  Schoolhouses  by  Jacketed  Stoves. 
1890.  —  The  Growth  of  Children  studied  by  Galton's  Method  of  Percentile 

Grades. 

On  Matters  relating  to  Slaughtering,  etc. 

1869.  —  Report  on  Slaughtering  for  the  Boston  Market. 
1871.  —  Slaughtering,  Bone-boiling  and  Fat-melting. 
1874.  —  The  Transportation  of  Live  Stock. 

The  Brighton  Abattoir,  etc. 

Miscellaneous. 

1870.  —  Homes  for  the  Poor,  Convalescent  Homes,  the  Sewage  Question. 

Air  and  its  Impurities. 

1871.  —  Proper  Provisions  for  the  Insane. 

1873.  —  Preventive  Medicine  and  the  Physician  of  the  Future. 

The  Health  of  the  Farmers  of  Massachusetts. 

Hospitals. 

Political  Economy  of  Health. 

1874.  —  Inebriate  Asylums  or  Hospitals. 

The  Value  of  Health  to  the  State. 

The  Composition  of  the  Air  of  the  Ground  Atmosphere. 

The  Ventilation  of  Railroad  Cars. 

Cremation  and  Burial:  an  Examination  of  their  Relative  Advan- 
tages. 

A  Report  on  the  Sanitary  Condition  of  the  State  Prison  at  Charles- 
town. 
1876.  —  Diseases  of  the  Mind. 
1877. —  Cottage  Hospitals. 

Dangers  from  Color  Blindness. 
1878.  —  Coal  Gas  from  Heating  Apparatus. 

Common  Defects  in  House  Drains. 

A  Contribution  to  the  Study  of  Ventilation. 
1882.  —  Our  Eyes  and  our  Industries. 
1884.  —  The  Relation  of  Illuminating  Gas  to  Public  Health. 

A  Study  of  the  Relative  Poisonous  Effects  of  Coal  and  Water  Gas. 

1888.  —  The  Number  and  Distribution  of  Micro-organisms  in  the  Air  of  the  I 

Boston  City  Hospital. 

1889.  —  The  Physique  of  Women  in  Massachusetts. 
1895.  —  Report  upon  the  Production  and  Use  of  Antitoxin. 

1905.  —  Description  of  the  New  Antitoxin  and  Vaccine  Laboratory  with  a 

Ten   Years'   Eetrospect   of  the   Production   and   Distribution   of 
Diphtheria  Antitoxin. 

1906.  —  A  Comparison  of  Methods  for  the  Determination  of  the  Alkalinity) 

of  Ash. 


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